Donald Trump Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! == Political career == {{Further|Political career of Donald Trump}} [[File:Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.jpg|thumb|right|Trump and President [[Bill Clinton]] in June 2000|alt=Donald Trump shakes hands with Bill Clinton in a lobby; Trump is speaking and Clinton is smiling, and both are wearing suits.]] Trump's political party affiliation has changed numerous times. He registered as a Republican in 1987;<ref name="reg">{{cite web|last=Gillin|first=Joshua|title=Bush says Trump was a Democrat longer than a Republican 'in the last decade'|url=https://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2015/aug/24/jeb-bush/bush-says-trump-was-democrat-longer-republican-las/|access-date=March 18, 2017|work=[[PolitiFact]]|date=August 24, 2015}}</ref> a member of the [[Independence Party of New York|Independence Party]], the New York state affiliate of the [[Reform Party of the United States of America|Reform Party]], in 1999;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/10/25/trump.cnn/|title=Trump Officially Joins Reform Party|work=[[CNN]]|date=October 25, 1999|access-date=December 26, 2020}}</ref> a Democrat in 2001; a Republican in 2009; unaffiliated in 2011; and a Republican in 2012.<ref name="reg"/> In 1987, Trump placed full-page advertisements in three major newspapers,<ref name="hint">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/02/nyregion/trump-gives-a-vague-hint-of-candidacy.html|title=Trump Gives a Vague Hint of Candidacy|work=[[The New York Times]]|first=Michael|last=Oreskes|author-link=Michael Oreskes|date=September 2, 1987|access-date=February 17, 2016}}</ref> expressing his views on foreign policy and on how to eliminate the federal budget deficit.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/11/18/us/trump-urged-to-head-gala-of-democrats.html|title=Trump Urged To Head Gala Of Democrats|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 18, 1987|access-date=October 1, 2021|first=Fox|last=Butterfield}}</ref> He ruled out running for local office but not for the presidency.<ref name="hint" /> In 1988, he approached [[Lee Atwater]], asking to be put into consideration to be Republican nominee [[George H. W. Bush]]'s running mate. Bush found the request "strange and unbelievable".<ref>{{cite book|first=Jon|last=Meacham|title=Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush|date=2016|page=326|publisher=Random House Publishing Group|isbn=9780812979473}}</ref> === Presidential campaigns (2000–2016) === In 2000, Trump [[Donald Trump 2000 presidential campaign|ran in the California and Michigan primaries]] for nomination as the Reform Party candidate for the [[2000 United States presidential election|2000 presidential election]] but withdrew from the race in February 2000.<ref>{{cite web|first=Richard|last=Winger|author-link=Richard Winger|title=Donald Trump Ran For President in 2000 in Several Reform Party Presidential Primaries|date=December 25, 2011|access-date=October 1, 2021|website=[[Ballot Access News]]|url=https://ballot-access.org/2011/12/25/donald-trump-ran-for-president-in-2000-in-several-reform-party-presidential-primaries/}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Clift|first=Eleanor|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-last-time-trump-wrecked-a-party|title=The Last Time Trump Wrecked a Party|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921152415/https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-last-time-trump-wrecked-a-party|archive-date=September 21, 2021|work=[[The Daily Beast]]|date=July 18, 2016|access-date=October 14, 2021|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Nagourney|first=Adam|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/politics/camp/021400wh-ref-trump.html|title=Reform Bid Said to Be a No-Go for Trump|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=February 14, 2000|access-date=December 26, 2020}}</ref> A July 1999 poll matching him against likely Republican nominee [[George W. Bush]] and likely Democratic nominee [[Al Gore]] showed Trump with seven percent support.<ref>{{cite web|last=Holland|first=Keating|url=https://edition.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/07/16/president.2000/poll/|title=Poll: Independent candidate would not fare well against Gore, Bush|work=[[CNN]]|date=July 16, 1999|access-date=October 2, 2023}}</ref> [[File:Donald Trump speaking at CPAC 2011 by Mark Taylor.jpg|thumb|right|Trump speaking at [[Conservative Political Action Conference|CPAC]] 2011|alt=Trump, leaning heavily onto a lectern, with his mouth open mid-speech and a woman clapping politely next to him]] In 2011, Trump [[Barack Obama citizenship conspiracy theories#Donald Trump|speculated about running]] against President Barack Obama in [[2012 United States presidential election|the 2012 election]], making his first speaking appearance at the [[Conservative Political Action Conference]] (CPAC) in February 2011 and giving speeches in early primary states.<ref name="McA">{{cite web|last=MacAskill|first=Ewen|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/may/16/donald-trump-us-presidential-race|title=Donald Trump bows out of 2012 US presidential election race|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=May 16, 2011|access-date=February 28, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Bobic|first1=Igor|last2=Stein|first2=Sam|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-cpac_n_58adc0f4e4b03d80af7141cf|title=How CPAC Helped Launch Donald Trump's Political Career|work=[[HuffPost]]|date=February 22, 2017|access-date=February 28, 2020}}</ref> In May 2011, he announced he would not run.<ref name="McA" /> Trump's presidential ambitions were generally not taken seriously at the time.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-cpac-president-act_n_821923|title=Donald Trump Brings His 'Pretend To Run For President' Act To CPAC|work=[[HuffPost]]|access-date=September 14, 2022|first=Jason|last=Linkins|date=February 11, 2011}}</ref> ==== 2016 presidential campaign ==== {{Main|Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign}} {{further|2016 Republican Party presidential primaries|2016 United States presidential election#General election campaign}} Trump's fame and provocative statements earned him an unprecedented amount of [[earned media|free media coverage]], elevating his standing in the Republican primaries.<ref name=Cillizza-160614>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/06/14/this-harvard-study-is-a-powerful-indictment-of-the-medias-role-in-donald-trumps-rise/|title=This Harvard study is a powerful indictment of the media's role in Donald Trump's rise|first=Chris|last=Cillizza|author-link=Chris Cillizza|date=June 14, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> He adopted the phrase "truthful hyperbole", coined by his ghostwriter Tony Schwartz, to describe his public speaking style.<ref name=MayerGhost /><ref>{{cite web|first1=Emily|last1=Flitter|first2=James|last2=Oliphant|title=Best president ever! How Trump's love of hyperbole could backfire|date=August 28, 2015|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[Reuters]]|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump-hyperbole-insight-idUSKCN0QX11X20150828}}</ref> His campaign statements were often opaque and suggestive,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2016/08/10/489476187/trump-s-second-amendment-comment-fit-a-pattern-of-ambiguous-speech|last=McCammon|first=Sarah|title=Donald Trump's controversial speech often walks the line|work=[[NPR]]|date=August 10, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021}}</ref> and a record number of them were false.<ref name="whoppers">{{cite web|title=The 'King of Whoppers': Donald Trump|url=https://www.factcheck.org/2015/12/the-king-of-whoppers-donald-trump/|work=[[FactCheck.org]]|access-date=March 4, 2019|date=December 21, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2015/dec/21/2015-lie-year-donald-trump-campaign-misstatements/|title=2015 Lie of the Year: the campaign misstatements of Donald Trump|work=[[PolitiFact]]|date=December 21, 2015|access-date=October 1, 2021|first1=Angie Drobnic|last1=Holan|author-link1=Angie Drobnic Holan|first2=Linda|last2=Qiu}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Paul|last=Farhi|title=Think Trump's wrong? Fact checkers can tell you how often. (Hint: A lot.)|date=February 26, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-existential-crisis-of-professional-factcheckers-in-the-year-of-trump/2016/02/25/e994f210-db3e-11e5-81ae-7491b9b9e7df_story.html}}</ref> The ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote, "Never in modern presidential politics has a major candidate made false statements as routinely as Trump has."<ref>{{cite web|work=[[CNN]]|url=https://money.cnn.com/2016/09/25/media/newspapers-donald-trump-hillary-clinton-lies/|title=The weekend America's newspapers called Donald Trump a liar|first=Brian|last=Stelter|author-link=Brian Stelter|date=September 26, 2016|access-date=March 1, 2023}}</ref><ref name="finnegan">{{cite web|last=Finnegan|first=Michael|title=Scope of Trump's falsehoods unprecedented for a modern presidential candidate|url=https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-false-statements-20160925-snap-story.html|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=September 25, 2016|access-date=October 10, 2021}}</ref> Trump said he disdained [[political correctness]] and frequently made claims of [[media bias]].<ref name=Walsh-160724>{{cite web|first=Kenneth T.|last=Walsh|author-link=Kenneth T. Walsh|title=Trump: Media Is 'Dishonest and Corrupt'|date=August 15, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[U.S. News & World Report]]|url=https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-08-15/trump-media-is-dishonest-and-corrupt}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/07/06/donald-trumps-failing-war-on-political-correctness/|title=Donald Trump is waging war on political correctness. And he's losing.|first=Aaron|last=Blake|date=July 6, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> [[File:Donald Trump by Gage Skidmore 5.jpg|thumb|alt=Trump speaking in front of an American flag behind a lectern, wearing a black suit and red hat. The lectern sports a blue "TRUMP" sign.|Trump campaigning in Arizona, March 2016]] Trump announced his candidacy in June 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/donald-trump-2016-announcement-10-best-lines-119066|first=Adam B.|last=Lerner|title=The 10 best lines from Donald Trump's announcement speech|work=[[Politico]]|date=June 16, 2015|access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/05/trumps-self-funding-lie/482691/|title=The Lie of Trump's 'Self-Funding' Campaign|work=[[The Atlantic]]|first=David A.|last=Graham|date=May 13, 2016|access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> [[Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign|His campaign]] was initially not taken seriously by political analysts, but he quickly rose to the top of opinion polls.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/123228/how-donald-trump-evolved-joke-almost-serious-candidate|date=October 27, 2015|first=Elspeth|last=Reeve|title=How Donald Trump Evolved From a Joke to an Almost Serious Candidate|magazine=[[The New Republic]]|access-date=July 23, 2018}}</ref> He became the front-runner in March 2016<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/03/23/why-donald-trump-is-poised-to-win-the-nomination-and-lose-the-general-election-in-one-poll/|title=Why Donald Trump is poised to win the nomination and lose the general election, in one poll|last=Bump|first=Philip|date=March 23, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> and was declared the presumptive Republican nominee in May.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/blogs/2016-gop-primary-live-updates-and-results/2016/05/reince-priebus-donald-trump-is-nominee-222767|title=RNC Chairman: Trump is our nominee|last=Nussbaum|first=Matthew|date=May 3, 2016|access-date=May 4, 2016|work=[[Politico]]}}</ref> [[Hillary Clinton]] led Trump in [[Nationwide opinion polling for the United States presidential election, 2016|national polling averages]] throughout the campaign, but, in early July, her lead narrowed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/data-points/poll-clinton-trump-now-tied-gop-convention-kicks-n611936|title=Poll: Clinton and Trump Now Tied as GOP Convention Kicks Off|last1=Hartig|first1=Hannah|last2=Lapinski|first2=John|last3=Psyllos|first3=Stephanie|date=July 19, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[NBC News]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2016-general-election-trump-vs-clinton|title=2016 General Election: Trump vs. Clinton|access-date=November 8, 2016|work=[[HuffPost]]|archive-date=October 2, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161002184537/http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2016-general-election-trump-vs-clinton|url-status=dead}}</ref> In mid-July Trump selected Indiana governor [[Mike Pence]] as his vice presidential running mate,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2016/07/15/donald-trump-officially-names-mike-pence-as-his-vp.html|title=Donald Trump officially names Mike Pence for VP|last=Levingston|first=Ivan|date=July 15, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[CNBC]]}}</ref> and the two were officially nominated at the [[2016 Republican National Convention]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/07/19/republicans-start-process-to-nominate-trump-for-president.html|title=Trump closes the deal, becomes Republican nominee for president|date=July 19, 2016|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[Fox News]]}}</ref> Trump and Clinton faced off in [[2016 United States presidential debates|three presidential debates]] in September and October 2016. Trump twice refused to say whether he would accept the result of the election.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-us-2016-37706499|title=US presidential debate: Trump won't commit to accept election result|date=October 20, 2016|access-date=October 27, 2016|work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> ===== Campaign rhetoric and political positions ===== {{Main|Political positions of Donald Trump}} Trump's political positions and [[Donald Trump's rhetoric|his rhetoric]] were [[Right-wing populism|right-wing populist]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2020/10/31/the-republican-party-has-lurched-towards-populism-and-illiberalism|title=The Republican Party has lurched towards populism and illiberalism|newspaper=[[The Economist]] |date=October 31, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118120752/https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2020/10/31/the-republican-party-has-lurched-towards-populism-and-illiberalism|archive-date=November 18, 2020|access-date=October 14, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Borger|first=Julian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/oct/26/republican-party-autocratic-hungary-turkey-study-trump|title=Republicans closely resemble autocratic parties in Hungary and Turkey – study|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=October 26, 2021|access-date=October 14, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Chotiner|first=Isaac|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/redefining-populism|title=Redefining Populism|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|date=July 29, 2021|access-date=October 14, 2021}}</ref> ''[[Politico]]'' described them as "eclectic, improvisational and often contradictory", quoting a health-care policy expert at the [[American Enterprise Institute]] as saying that his political positions were "a total random assortment of whatever plays publicly".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/will-the-real-donald-trump-please-stand-up-120607|title=Will the real Donald Trump please stand up?|last=Noah|first=Timothy|author-link=Timothy Noah|date=July 26, 2015|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[Politico]]}}</ref> [[NBC News]] counted "141 distinct shifts on 23 major issues" during his campaign.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/full-list-donald-trump-s-rapidly-changing-policy-positions-n547801|title=A Full List of Donald Trump's Rapidly Changing Policy Positions|last=Timm|first=Jane C.|date=March 30, 2016|access-date=July 12, 2016|work=[[NBC News]]}}</ref> Trump described NATO as "obsolete".<ref>{{cite web|first=Jenna|last=Johnson|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/04/12/trump-on-nato-i-said-it-was-obsolete-its-no-longer-obsolete/|title=Trump on NATO: 'I said it was obsolete. It's no longer obsolete.'|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=April 12, 2017|access-date=November 26, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|year=2018|doi=10.1080/01463373.2018.1438485|title=Make America Great Again: Donald Trump and Redefining the U.S. Role in the World|quote=On the campaign trail, Trump repeatedly called North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) 'obsolete'.|journal=[[Communication Quarterly]]|volume=66|issue=2<!--|pages=176–195 -->|page=176|first=Jason A.|last=Edwards}}</ref> and espoused views that were described as [[Non-interventionism|non-interventionist]] and protectionist.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rucker|first1=Philip|author-link1=Philip Rucker|last2=Costa|first2=Robert|author-link2=Robert Costa (journalist)|date=March 21, 2016|access-date=August 24, 2021|title=Trump questions need for NATO, outlines noninterventionist foreign policy|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/03/21/donald-trump-reveals-foreign-policy-team-in-meeting-with-the-washington-post/}}</ref> His campaign platform emphasized renegotiating [[China–United States relations|U.S.–China relations]] and free trade agreements such as [[NAFTA]], strongly enforcing immigration laws, and building [[Trump wall|a new wall]] along the [[U.S.–Mexico border]]. Other campaign positions included pursuing [[energy independence]] while opposing climate change regulations, modernizing [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs#Veterans Benefits Administration|services for veterans]], repealing and replacing the [[Affordable Care Act]], abolishing [[Common Core]] education standards, [[Infrastructure-based development|investing in infrastructure]], simplifying the [[Internal Revenue Code|tax code]] while reducing taxes, and imposing [[tariff]]s on imports by companies that offshore jobs. He advocated increasing military spending and extreme vetting or banning immigrants from Muslim-majority countries.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-37982000|title=Trump's promises before and after the election|date=September 19, 2017|access-date=October 1, 2021|work=[[BBC]]}}</ref> Trump helped bring far-right fringe ideas and organizations into the mainstream.<ref>{{cite web|last=Bierman|first=Noah|date=August 22, 2016|title=Donald Trump helps bring far-right media's edgier elements into the mainstream|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|url=https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-media-20160820-snap-story.html |access-date=October 7, 2021}}</ref> In August 2016, Trump hired [[Steve Bannon]], the executive chairman of ''[[Breitbart News]]''—described by Bannon as "the platform for the alt-right"—as his campaign CEO.<ref>{{cite web|title=Clickbait scoops and an engaged alt-right: everything to know about Breitbart News|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/nov/15/breitbart-news-alt-right-stephen-bannon-trump-administration|access-date=November 18, 2016|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=November 15, 2016|first=Jason|last=Wilson}}</ref> The [[alt-right]] movement coalesced around and supported Trump's candidacy, due in part to its [[opposition to multiculturalism]] and [[Opposition to immigration|immigration]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Weigel|first=David|author-link=David Weigel|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/racial-realists-are-cheered-by-trumps-latest-strategy/2016/08/20/cd71e858-6636-11e6-96c0-37533479f3f5_story.html|title='Racialists' are cheered by Trump's latest strategy|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=August 20, 2016|access-date=June 23, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://cnn.com/2016/08/25/politics/alt-right-explained-hillary-clinton-donald-trump/|title=Clinton is attacking the 'Alt-Right' – What is it?|first=Gregory|last=Krieg|access-date=August 25, 2016|date=August 25, 2016|work=[[CNN]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Pierce|first=Matt|title=Q&A: What is President Trump's relationship with far-right and white supremacist groups?|url=https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-09-30/la-na-pol-2020-trump-white-supremacy|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=September 20, 2020|access-date=October 7, 2021}}</ref> ===== Financial disclosures ===== {{Further|Tax returns of Donald Trump}} Trump's FEC-required reports listed assets above $1.4 billion and outstanding debts of at least $315 million.<ref name="disclosure" /><ref>{{cite web|publisher=[[U.S. Office of Government Ethics]]|via=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]]|date=July 15, 2015|title=Executive Branch Personnel Public Financial Disclosure Report (U.S. OGE Form 278e)|url=https://images.businessweek.com/cms/2015-07-22/7-22-15-Report.pdf|archive-date=July 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723053945/https://images.businessweek.com/cms/2015-07-22/7-22-15-Report.pdf|access-date=December 21, 2023}}</ref> Trump did not release [[Donald Trump's tax returns|his tax returns]], contrary to the practice of every major candidate since 1976 and his promises in 2014 and 2015 to do so if he ran for office.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2016/05/11/donald-trump-breaks-with-recent-history-by-not-releasing-tax-returns/|title=Donald Trump Breaks With Recent History by Not Releasing Tax Returns|last=Rappeport|first=Alan|author-link=Alan Rappeport|date=May 11, 2016|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=July 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Qiu|first=Linda|title=Pence's False claim that Trump 'hasn't broken' tax return promise|url=https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/oct/05/mike-pence/pences-false-claim-trump-hasnt-broken-tax-return-p/|work=[[PolitiFact]]|date=October 5, 2016|access-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref> He said his tax returns were being [[Income tax audit|audited]], and that his lawyers had advised him against releasing them.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://money.cnn.com/2016/02/26/pf/taxes/trump-tax-returns-audit/|title=Trump says he can't release tax returns because of audits|last1=Isidore|first1=Chris|last2=Sahadi|first2=Jeanne|date=February 26, 2016|access-date=March 1, 2023|work=[[CNN]]}}</ref> After a lengthy court battle to block release of his tax returns and other records to the [[New York County District Attorney|Manhattan district attorney]] for a criminal investigation, including two appeals by Trump to the [[United States Supreme Court|U.S. Supreme Court]], in February 2021 the high court allowed the records to be released to the prosecutor for review by a grand jury.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://cnn.com/2021/02/22/politics/supreme-court-trump-taxes-vance/|title=Supreme Court allows release of Trump tax returns to NY prosecutor|first=Ariane|last=de Vogue|date=February 22, 2021|access-date=September 14, 2022|work=[[CNN]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Jessica|last=Gresko|url=https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-donald-trump-tax-rercords-3aee14146906351ee9dd34aa7b6f4386|title=Supreme Court won't halt turnover of Trump's tax records|date=February 22, 2021|access-date=October 2, 2021|work=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> In October 2016, portions of Trump's state filings for 1995 were leaked to a reporter from ''The New York Times''. They show that Trump had declared a loss of $916 million that year, which could have let him avoid taxes for up to 18 years.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/10/us/politics/donald-trump-taxes.html|title=Donald Trump Acknowledges Not Paying Federal Income Taxes for Years|last1=Eder|first1=Steve|last2=Twohey|first2=Megan|author-link2=Megan Twohey|date=October 10, 2016|access-date=October 2, 2021|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> ===== Election to the presidency ===== {{Main|2016 United States presidential election}} [[File:ElectoralCollege2016.svg|thumb|upright=1.3|2016 electoral vote results. Trump won 304–227|alt=Electoral college map, depicting Trump winning many states in the South and Midwest and Biden winning many states in the Northeast and Pacific West]] On November 8, 2016, Trump received 306 pledged [[Electoral College (United States)|electoral votes]] versus 232 for Clinton, though, after elector [[Faithless electors in the United States presidential election, 2016|defections on both sides]], the official count was ultimately 304 to 227.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Kiersten|last1=Schmidt|first2=Wilson|last2=Andrews|title=A Historic Number of Electors Defected, and Most Were Supposed to Vote for Clinton|date=December 19, 2016|access-date=January 31, 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/12/19/us/elections/electoral-college-results.html}}</ref> Trump, the fifth person to be elected president [[United States presidential elections in which the winner lost the popular vote|while losing the popular vote]], received nearly 2.9 million fewer votes than Clinton.<ref>{{cite web|last=Desilver|first=Drew|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/12/20/why-electoral-college-landslides-are-easier-to-win-than-popular-vote-ones/|title=Trump's victory another example of how Electoral College wins are bigger than popular vote ones|website=[[Pew Research Center]]|date=December 20, 2016|access-date=October 2, 2021}}</ref> He also was the only president who [[List of presidents of the United States by previous experience|neither served in the military nor held any government office]] prior to becoming president.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/11/13587532/donald-trump-no-experience|title=Donald Trump will be the only US president ever with no political or military experience|last=Crockett|first=Zachary|date=November 11, 2016|work=[[Vox (website)|Vox]]|access-date=January 3, 2017}}</ref> Trump's victory was a [[political upset]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2016/11/election-results-2016-clinton-trump-231070|title=Trump pulls off biggest upset in U.S. history|work=[[Politico]]|date=November 9, 2016|first1=Shane|last1=Goldmacher|first2=Ben|last2=Schreckinger|access-date=November 9, 2016}}</ref> Polls had consistently shown Clinton with a [[Nationwide opinion polling for the 2016 United States presidential election|nationwide]]—though diminishing—lead, as well as an advantage in most of the [[Statewide opinion polling for the 2016 United States presidential election|competitive states]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/10/upshot/why-trump-won-working-class-whites.html|title=Why Trump Won: Working-Class Whites|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 9, 2016|first=Nate|last=Cohn|access-date=November 9, 2016}}</ref> Trump won 30 states, including [[Michigan]], [[Pennsylvania]], and [[Wisconsin]], states which had been considered a [[Blue wall (U.S. politics)|blue wall]] of Democratic strongholds since the 1990s. Clinton won 20 states and the [[District of Columbia]]. Trump's victory marked the return of an [[Divided government in the United States|undivided]] Republican government—a Republican White House combined with Republican control of both chambers of [[United States Congress|Congress]].<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=November 9, 2016|access-date=October 2, 2021|first=Amber|last=Phillips|title=Republicans are poised to grasp the holy grail of governance|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/11/09/republicans-are-about-to-reach-the-holy-grail-of-governance/}}</ref> [[File:Women's March on Washington (32593123745).jpg|thumb|[[2017 Women's March|Women's March]] in Washington on January 21, 2017|alt=Pennsylvania Ave., completely packed with protesters, mostly women, many wearing pink and holding signs with progressive feminist slogans]] Trump's election victory sparked [[Protests against Donald Trump#After the election|protests]] in major U.S. cities.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Logan|first1=Brian|last2=Sanchez|first2=Chris|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/anti-donald-trump-protest-united-states-2016-11|title=Protests against Donald Trump break out nationwide|date=November 10, 2016|work=[[Business Insider]] |access-date=September 16, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-tweets-that-protesters-have-passion-for-our-great-country-2016-11|title=Trump says protesters have 'passion for our great country' after calling demonstrations 'very unfair'|last=Colson|first=Thomas|date=November 11, 2016|work=[[Business Insider]]|access-date=December 21, 2023}}</ref> On the day after Trump's inauguration, an estimated 2.6 million people worldwide, including an estimated half million in Washington, D.C., protested against Trump in the [[2017 Women's March|Women's Marches]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/21/womens-march-aims-start-movement-trump-inauguration/96864158/|title=At 2.6 million strong, Women's Marches crush expectations|last1=Przybyla|first1=Heidi M.|last2=Schouten|first2=Fredreka|date=January 21, 2017|work=[[USA Today]]|access-date=January 22, 2017}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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