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Donald John Trump Jr. (born December 31, 1977) is an American political activist, businessman, author, and former television presenter. He is the eldest child of
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
, 45th
president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal gove ...
from 2017 to 2021, and his first wife Ivana Trump. Trump serves as a
trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to ...
and executive vice president of
The Trump Organization The Trump Organization is a Conglomerate (company), group of about 500 business entities of which Donald Trump is the sole or principal owner. Around 250 of these entities use the Trump name. The organization was founded in 1927 by Donald Trum ...
, running the company alongside his younger brother Eric. During their father's presidency, the brothers continued to do deals and investments in foreign countries, as well as collect payments in their U.S. properties from foreign governments, despite a pledge that they would not do so. Trump also served as a boardroom judge on his father's TV show ''
The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with various professional backg ...
''. He authored '' Triggered'' in 2019 and '' Liberal Privilege'' in 2020. Trump was active in his father's 2016 presidential campaign. He cooperated with Russia in their interference in the 2016 United States elections and had a meeting with a Russian lawyer who promised damaging information about the campaign of
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
in the 2016 presidential election. Trump campaigned for several Republicans during the 2018 midterm elections. He has promoted several conspiracy theories. Trump was also active in his father's 2020 presidential campaign, often being on the campaign trail and being featured in the news for making unfounded claims. During the
election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operat ...
he called for "total war" as the results were counted and promoted the
stolen election conspiracy theory After Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election, then-incumbent Donald Trump pursued an unprecedented effort to overturn the election, with support and assistance from his campaign, proxies, political allies, and many of h ...
. Following his father's defeat, he engaged in attempts to overturn the results. He spoke at the rally that led to the storming of the Capitol, where he threatened Trump's opponents that "we're coming for you." In January 2021,
Attorney General for the District of Columbia The Attorney General for the District of Columbia is the chief legal officer of the District of Columbia. While attorneys general previously were appointed by the mayor, District of Columbia voters approved a charter amendment in 2010 that ...
Karl Racine Karl Anthony Racine (born December 14, 1962) is a Haitian-American lawyer and politician. He is the first independently elected Attorney General of the District of Columbia, a position he has held since January 2015. Before that, he was the mana ...
said that he is looking at whether to charge Donald Trump Jr. with
inciting In criminal law, incitement is the encouragement of another person to commit a crime. Depending on the jurisdiction, some or all types of incitement may be illegal. Where illegal, it is known as an inchoate offense, where harm is intended but ...
the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol in the criminal investigation into the attack. CNN reported in April 2022 that two days after the election, Trump Jr. sent a text message to White House Chief of Staff
Mark Meadows Mark Randall Meadows (born July 28, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 29th White House chief of staff from 2020 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the U.S. representative for North Carolina's 11th c ...
outlining paths to subvert the Electoral College process and ensure his father a second term.


Early life

Trump was born on December 31, 1977, in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, New York City, to Ivana and
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
. He has two younger siblings, Ivanka and Eric. He also has two half siblings, Tiffany, from his father's marriage to Marla Maples, and Barron, from his father's current marriage to
Melania Trump Melania Trump ( ; born Melanija Knavs , Germanized as Melania Knauss ; born April 26, 1970) is a Slovene-American former model and businesswoman who served as First Lady of the United States from 2017 to 2021 as the wife of 45th president Do ...
. Through his father, Trump is a grandson of
Fred Trump Frederick Christ Trump Sr. (October 11, 1905 – June 25, 1999) was an American real estate developer and businessman. A member of the Trump family, he was the father of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States. In partnership w ...
and great-grandson of Elizabeth Christ Trump, who founded what became the Trump Organization. As a boy, Trump found a role model in his maternal grandfather, Miloš Zelníček, who had a home near
Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
, where he spent summers camping, fishing, hunting and learning the
Czech language Czech (; Czech ), historically also Bohemian (; ''lingua Bohemica'' in Latin), is a West Slavic language of the Czech–Slovak group, written in Latin script. Spoken by over 10 million people, it serves as the official language of the Czech Re ...
. His parents divorced when he was 13 years old due to his father having an
extramarital affair An affair is a sexual relationship, romantic friendship, or passionate attachment in which at least one of its participants has a formal or informal commitment to a third person who may neither agree to such relationship nor even be aware of ...
. Trump Jr. was estranged from his father for one year after the divorce, furious at his actions which broke up the family. Trump was educated at Buckley School and
The Hill School The Hill School (commonly known as The Hill) is a coeducational preparatory boarding school located on a campus in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, about northwest of Philadelphia. The Hill is part of the Ten Schools Admissions Organization (TSAO). ...
, a college preparatory boarding school in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, followed by the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...
's (Penn)
Wharton School The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in ...
, where he graduated in 2000 with a B.S. in
Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics anal ...
.


Career

After graduating from Penn in 2000, Trump moved to
Aspen, Colorado Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Moun ...
, where he hunted, fished, skied, lived in a truck, and worked as a bartender for a year, before returning to join the
Trump Organization Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. ...
in New York. Trump has supervised building projects, which included
40 Wall Street 40 Wall Street, also known as the Trump Building, is a Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic skyscraper on Wall Street between Nassau Street (Manhattan), Nassau and William Street (Manhattan), William streets in the Financial District, Manh ...
, Trump International Hotel and Tower, and
Trump Park Avenue Trump Park Avenue is a residential building on the southern border of Lenox Hill at 502 Park Avenue in Manhattan, New York City. The 32-story building, designed by Goldner and Goldner in 1929, today contains 120 luxury condominium apartments ...
, In 2006 he helped launch Trump Mortgage, which collapsed less than a year later. In 2010, he became a spokesperson and "executive director of global branding" for Cambridge Who's Who, a vanity publisher against whom hundreds of complaints had already been filed with the
Better Business Bureau Better Business Bureau (BBB) is a private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 97 independently incorporated local BBB organizations in the Unite ...
. He appeared as a guest adviser and judge on many episodes of his father's reality television show ''
The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with various professional backg ...
'', from season 5 in 2006 to his father's last season in 2015.


Trump Organization

On January 11, 2017, Trump's father announced that he and his brother Eric would oversee a trust that included the Trump Organization's assets while his father was president, to avert a
conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...
. Amid the Trump–Ukraine scandal – where Trump asked the Ukrainian president to investigate Joe Biden and his son
Hunter Biden Robert Hunter Biden (born February 4, 1970) is an American attorney who is the second son of U.S. President Joe Biden and his first wife Neilia Hunter Biden. He is also a hedge fund, venture capital, and private-equity fund investor who for ...
Trump Jr. strongly criticized Hunter Biden, accusing him of nepotism and leveraging his father as a means to get financial benefits. Trump Jr. said, "When you're the father and your son's entire career is dependent on that, they own you." Trump Jr. was widely ridiculed for these remarks by Trevor Noah and others. Trump Jr. is a high-level executive in his father's business and has continued to operate and promote the family's businesses across the world during Trump's presidency. The
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. new ...
wrote of Trump Jr.'s, remarks that he was "showing no self-awareness that he, too, has at least in part been successful because of a famous father". According to ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' fact-checker, Trump Jr.'s assertion that he and his family members had gotten out of foreign business deals after Trump became president is false. ''The Washington Post'' reported that after Trump became president, "Trump's sons have been busy selling assets to foreign individuals, expanding or adding onto their existing deals and investments in foreign countries, and collecting payments in U.S. properties from foreign governments." In February 2018, advertisements in Indian newspapers promoted a deal whereby anyone who purchased
Trump Organization Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. ...
apartments in
Gurgaon Gurgaon (pronunciation: �ʊɽɡãːw, officially named Gurugram (pronunciation: �ʊɾʊɡɾaːm, is a city located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest of the nationa ...
before February 20 would be invited to have a "conversation and dinner" with Trump Jr. The ads were criticized by corruption watchdogs as unethical.


Involvement in politics


2016 presidential campaign

Ahead of the 2016 presidential election, Trump Jr. was a central member of his father's campaign, characterized by ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' as a "close political adviser". He spoke at the
Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...
, along with his siblings Ivanka, Eric and Tiffany. Trump Jr. influenced his father's choice of
Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to: * Secretary of the Interior (Mexico) * Interior Secretary of Pakistan * Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines) * United States Secretary of the Interior See also *Interior ministry An ...
Ryan Zinke Ryan Keith Zinke (; born November 1, 1961) is an American politician and businessman. Zinke, a member of the Republican Party, served in the Montana Senate from 2009 to 2013 and as the U.S. representative for Montana's at-large congressional d ...
during the presidential transition. Since his father's victory in the 2016 election, Trump Jr. has developed what ''The Washington Post'' calls a "public persona as a right-wing provocateur and ardent defender of Trumpism". ''The Atlantic'' reported in 2019 that Trump had described Trump Jr. in 2017 as "not the sharpest knife in the drawer." Trump Jr. earned the nickname "Fredo" among some Trump campaign staffers, a reference to a character in ''
The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel of the same title. The film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caa ...
''.


Veselnitskaya meeting

On June 9, 2016, Trump Jr. attended a meeting arranged by publicist Rob Goldstone on behalf of Azerbaijani-Russian businessman Emin Agalarov. The meeting was held in Trump Tower in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, among three members of the presidential campaign: Trump Jr.,
Jared Kushner Jared Corey Kushner (born January 10, 1981) is an American businessman and investor. He served as a senior advisor to 45th U.S. president Donald Trump, his father-in-law. Since leaving the White House, Kushner founded Affinity Partners, a priv ...
, and
Paul Manafort Paul John Manafort Jr. (; born April 1, 1949) is an American lobbyist, political consultant, and Lawyer, attorney. A long-time Republican Party (United States), Republican Party campaign consultant, he chaired the Donald Trump 2016 presidential ...
and Russian lawyer
Natalia Veselnitskaya Natalia Vladimirovna Veselnitskaya ( rus, Ната́лья Влади́мировна Весельни́цкая, p=nɐˈtalʲjə vʲɪsʲɪlʲˈnʲitskəjə; born 22 February 1975 Kramatorsk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union) is a Ru ...
, her translator Anatoli Samochornov, Russian-American lobbyist
Rinat Akhmetshin Rinat Rafkatovitch Akhmetshin (russian: Ринат Рафкатович Ахметшин, born 1967) is a Russian-American
, and Ike Kaveladze, a
Georgian-American Georgian Americans ( ka, ქართველი ამერიკელები, tr) are Americans of full or partial Georgian ancestry. They encompass ethnic Georgians who have immigrated to the U.S. from Georgia, as well as other areas wi ...
, U.S.-based senior vice president at Crocus Group, the real estate development company run by
Aras Agalarov Aras Iskanderovich Agalarov ( az, Araz İsgəndəroviç Ağalarov; russian: link=no, Ара́з Исканде́рович Агала́ров; born 8 November 1955) is an Azerbaijani-Russian billionaire real estate developer. Several sources hav ...
. Approximately a year later, Trump Jr. initially told the media that adoption of Russian children was the main subject of the meeting. On July 8, 2017, Trump Jr. tweeted his email exchange with Goldstone. It revealed that Trump Jr. had agreed to attend the meeting with the understanding he would receive information damaging to
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
. Goldstone also wrote in one of Trump Jr.'s publicly disclosed emails that the Russian government was involved.
Robert Mueller Robert Swan Mueller III (; born August 7, 1944) is an American lawyer and government official who served as the sixth director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2001 to 2013. A graduate of Princeton University and New York ...
, the
special counsel In the United States, a special counsel (formerly called special prosecutor or independent counsel) is a lawyer appointed to investigate, and potentially prosecute, a particular case of suspected wrongdoing for which a conflict of interest ex ...
of the
Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
in charge of Russia-related investigations, investigated the emails and the meeting. Although the White House lauded Trump Jr. for his transparency, he released the e-mails only after ''The New York Times'' had informed him that they had them and were going to publish a story about them. In June 2019, Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee made a criminal referral of Trump Jr. to federal prosecutors on suspicions that he misled the committee with his testimony.


Meeting with Gulf states emissary

Trump Jr. had a meeting in August 2016 with an emissary for the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...
and
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
who offered help to the Trump presidential campaign. The meeting included Joel Zamel, an Israeli specialist in
social media manipulation Internet manipulation refers to the co-optation of digital technology, such as social media algorithms and automated scripts, for commercial, social or political purposes. Such tactics may be employed with the explicit intent to manipulate public ...
; George Nader, an envoy representing the crown princes of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia; and American businessman Erik Prince.


Correspondence with WikiLeaks

In November 2017, news broke that
Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. WikiLeaks came to international attention in 2010 when it published a series of leaks provided by U.S. Army int ...
had used the
WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is an international non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activist, is generally described as its founder and director and ...
Twitter account to correspond with Donald Trump Jr. during the 2016 presidential election. Trump Jr. had already provided this correspondence to congressional investigators who were looking into Russian interference in the 2016 election. The correspondence showed that WikiLeaks actively solicited the cooperation of Trump Jr., who was a campaign surrogate and advisor in the campaign of his father. WikiLeaks urged the Trump campaign to reject the results of the 2016 presidential election at a time when it appeared the Trump campaign would lose. WikiLeaks asked Trump Jr. to share an unsubstantiated claim that Hillary Clinton had wanted to attack Assange with drones. WikiLeaks also shared a link to a website that would help people search through Clinton campaign manager
John Podesta John David Podesta Jr. (born January 8, 1949) is an American political consultant who has served as Senior Advisor to President Joe Biden for clean energy innovation and implementation since September 2022. Podesta previously served as Whit ...
's hacked e-mails, which Wikileaks had recently made public. Trump Jr. shared both.


2018 midterm election campaigns

During the 2018 midterms election cycle, Trump actively campaigned on behalf of Republican candidates, including for
Matt Rosendale Matthew Martin Rosendale Sr. (born July 7, 1960) is an American politician and businessman from Montana. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. representative for Montana's at-large congressional district, elected in 2020. Prior to t ...
, Patrick Morrisey, Mike Braun,
Ron DeSantis Ronald Dion DeSantis (; born September 14, 1978) is an American politician serving as the 46th governor of Florida since January 2019. A member of the Republican Party, DeSantis represented Florida's 6th district in the U.S. House of Repres ...
,
Lee Zeldin Lee Michael Zeldin (born January 30, 1980) is an American attorney, politician, and officer in the United States Army Reserve. A Republican, he has represented New York's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representativ ...
and Matt Gaetz. He raised millions of dollars for Republican candidates, was second only to his father in his ability to draw crowds to campaign events, and is credited with helping Republican candidates win.


Other political activities

In 2007, Trump Jr. gave $4,000 to then-Senator
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
's campaign to be the Democratic presidential nominee. In 2011, Trump Jr. responded to criticism of the
Tea Party movement The Tea Party movement was an American fiscally conservative political movement within the Republican Party that began in 2009. Members of the movement called for lower taxes and for a reduction of the national debt and federal budget def ...
by Florida representative
Frederica Wilson Frederica Smith Wilson (born Frederica Patricia Smith, November 5, 1942) is an American politician who has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 2011, representing . Located in South Florida, Wilson's congressional dis ...
by confusing Wilson with California representative Maxine Waters and saying her colorful hats made her look like a
stripper A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. ...
. In April 2017, he campaigned for Montana congressional candidate
Greg Gianforte Gregory Richard Gianforte (born April 17, 1961) is an American businessman, politician, software engineer, and writer serving as the 25th governor of Montana since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Gianforte served as the U.S. represent ...
, and in May met with
Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in ...
officials to discuss the party's strategy and resources. In September 2017, Trump Jr. asked to have his
Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. Fo ...
detail removed, telling friends he wanted more privacy, the second presidential child to do so. The request was criticized by former Secret Service agents. Trump Jr.'s protection was restored later that month. In October 2020, it was reported that Pennsylvania Republicans were suggesting Trump Jr. run for the vacant Senate seat in Pennsylvania in 2022 after two-term incumbent
Pat Toomey Patrick Joseph Toomey Jr. (born November 17, 1961) is an American businessman and politician serving as the junior United States senator for Pennsylvania since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he served three terms as the U.S. representa ...
announced he would not be seeking re-election. In the same month, Trump Jr. held a crowded indoor rally where attendees did not wear masks, contradicting public health guidelines. In an October 29 interview with
Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is o ...
's Laura Ingraham, Trump Jr. asserted that the coronavirus death rate has dropped to "almost nothing", adding "(b)ecause we've gotten control of this thing. We understand how it works – they have the therapeutics to be able to deal with this. If you look at that, look at my Instagram, it's gone down to almost nothing." On that day, the number of coronavirus deaths in the U.S. was 1,063. Trump has been the subject of speculation for a 2024 run for president. In October 2020, he posted a photo to his Instagram account of a "Don Jr. 2024" flag.


Views and controversies


Race and immigration

During his father's presidential campaign, Trump Jr. caused controversy in 2016 when he posted an image that compared refugees to Skittles, saying "If I had a bowl of Skittles and I told you just three would kill you, would you take a handful? That's our Syrian refugee problem." The makers of Skittles condemned the tweet, saying "Skittles are candy. Refugees are people. We don't feel it's an appropriate analogy." The
Cato Institute The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch Ind ...
claimed that year that the chances "an American would be killed in a terrorist attack committed by a refugee was one in 3.64 billion" per year. On March 1, 2016, an interview with
white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
James Edwards and Trump Jr. was aired. The campaign initially denied the interview had taken place; later Trump Jr. claimed it was unintentional. As a consequence of the interview, mainstream media outlets have accused Trump Jr. of being either a believer in the
white genocide conspiracy theory The white genocide, white extinction, or white replacement conspiracy theory is a white supremacist conspiracy theory which states that there is a deliberate plot, often blamed on Jews, to promote miscegenation, interracial marriage, mass no ...
, or pretending to be an advocate for political gain. In September 2016, Trump Jr. cited
Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...
imagery to criticize what he perceived as the mainstream media's uncritical coverage of Hillary Clinton during her campaign, by "letting her slide on every discrepancy", while also accusing Democrats involved in the 2016 campaign of lying. Trump Jr. said if the Republicans were committing the same offences mainstream outlets would be "warming up the gas chamber right now". Also that month, Trump Jr. shared an image on
Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
depicting a cross between his father and
Pepe the Frog Pepe the Frog () is an Internet meme consisting of a green anthropomorphic frog with a humanoid body. Pepe originated in a 2005 comic by Matt Furie called ''Boy's Club''. It became an Internet meme when its popularity steadily grew across Myspa ...
. When asked on ''
Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. ...
'' about Pepe the Frog and its associations with
white supremacy White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White ...
, Trump Jr. said he had never heard of Pepe the Frog and thought it was just a "frog with a wig". In April 2017, Trump Jr. lauded conspiracy theorist Mike Cernovich, who has promoted the debunked
white genocide The white genocide, white extinction, or white replacement conspiracy theory is a white supremacist conspiracy theory which states that there is a deliberate plot, often blamed on Jews, to promote miscegenation, interracial marriage, mass non- ...
and
Pizzagate "Pizzagate" is a conspiracy theory that went viral during the 2016 United States presidential election cycle. It has been extensively discredited by a wide range of organizations, including the Washington, D.C. police. In March 2016, the pe ...
conspiracy theories, saying, "In a long gone time of unbiased journalism he'd win the Pulitzer". In August 2020, the
Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white ...
reported that Trump Jr. appeared at a far-right "We Build the Wall" event with Neo-Nazi collaborator
Jack Posobiec Jack Michael Posobiec III ( ; born December 14, 1984) is an American alt-right political activist, television correspondent and presenter, conspiracy theorist, * * * * and provocateur. Posobiec is known for his pro- Donald Trump comments on ...
in July 2019.


Promotion of conspiracy theories

Trump Jr. retweeted conspiratorial remarks by white supremacist
Kevin B. MacDonald Kevin B. MacDonald (born January 24, 1944) is an American antisemitic conspiracy theorist, white supremacist, and retired professor of evolutionary psychology at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). In 2008, the CSULB academic sen ...
about alleged favors exchanged by Hillary Clinton and Switzerland's largest bank. On the campaign trail, Trump Jr. promoted Alex Jones' conspiracy theory that Hillary Clinton wore an earpiece to a presidential forum and that official unemployment rates were manipulated for political purposes. In March 2017, Trump Jr. criticized the mayor of London,
Sadiq Khan Sadiq Aman Khan (; born 8 October 1970) is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting from 2005 until 2016. A member of the Labour Party, Khan is on the party's sof ...
, after the
2017 Westminster attack On 22 March 2017, a terrorist attack took place outside the Palace of Westminster in London, seat of the British Parliament. Khalid Masood, a 52-year-old Briton, drove a car into pedestrians on the pavement along the south side of Westminster ...
, which in turn led British lawmakers to criticize Trump Jr. British journalists said Trump Jr. had quoted Khan out of context when he criticized him. Khan did not respond to the criticism, saying he had "far more important things" to do. In May 2017, Trump Jr. promoted what CNN called the "long-debunked, far-right conspiracy theory" that
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
was linked to Vince Foster's death. In November, Trump Jr. again promoted the conspiracy theory that the Clintons had murdered people. In February 2018, Trump Jr. liked two tweets promoting a
conspiracy theory A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * * * * The term has a nega ...
that survivors of the
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting On February 14, 2018, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Miami suburban town of Parkland, Florida, murdering 17 people and injuring 17 others. Cruz, a former student at ...
were coached into propagating anti-Trump rhetoric. In May 2018, Trump Jr. retweeted a false and
antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Ant ...
conspiracy theory that
George Soros George Soros ( name written in eastern order), (born György Schwartz, August 12, 1930) is a Hungarian-American businessman and philanthropist. , he had a net worth of US$8.6 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated mo ...
, the Jewish Hungarian-American businessman and philanthropist, was a "nazi '' ic' who turned in his fellow Jews to be murdered in German concentration camps & stole their wealth". The tweets originated from Roseanne Barr, whose TV show ''
Roseanne ''Roseanne'' is an American sitcom television series created by Matt Williams and Roseanne Barr which aired on ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May 22, 2018. The show stars Barr as Rosea ...
'' was canceled the same day after she had posted a series of racist and antisemitic tweets. A spokesperson for Soros responded to the tweets, "George Soros survived the Nazi occupation of Hungary as a 13-year-old child by going into hiding and assuming a false identity with the help of his father, who managed to save his own family and help many other Jews survive the Holocaust." In June 2018, Trump Jr. liked a tweet suggesting that the migrant children separated from their parents due to the
Trump administration family separation policy The United States family separation policy under the Trump administration was presented to the public as a "zero tolerance" approach intended to deter illegal immigration and to encourage tougher legislation. In some cases, families followi ...
were actually actors. In August 2018, Trump Jr. shared on Instagram a doctored image which had been crudely edited to falsely state that CNN had reported President Trump's approval rating as 50%. The actual CNN report had Trump at 40%, below
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
's 45% at the same point of his presidency. Trump Jr. deleted the image two days later. In September 2018, when Hurricane Florence was affecting the United States, Trump Jr. tweeted a picture of CNN journalist
Anderson Cooper Anderson Hays Cooper (born June 3, 1967) is an American broadcast journalist and political commentator from the Vanderbilt family. He is the primary anchor of the CNN news broadcast show '' Anderson Cooper 360°''. In addition to his duties a ...
waist-deep in floodwaters when another man in the same picture was standing knee-deep a distance away. In the same tweet, Trump Jr. included a link to a ''
Breitbart News ''Breitbart News Network'' (known commonly as ''Breitbart News'', ''Breitbart'', or ''Breitbart.com'') is an Radical right (United States), American far-rightMultiple sources: * * * * * * * * * * * * syndicated news, opinion, and commentary ...
'' article claiming that CNN's ratings had dropped by 41%, and proposed a conspiracy theory that CNN was "lying to try to make is father, President Trumplook bad". In actuality, the picture of Cooper was about 10 years old, taken during 2008's
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
before Trump became president, and Cooper was videoed talking about how the floodwaters were receding. In May 2020, Trump Jr. falsely accused Joe Biden of being a
pedophile Pedophilia ( alternatively spelt paedophilia) is a psychiatric disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a primary or exclusive sexual attraction to prepubescent children. Although girls typically begin the process of pubert ...
. In August 2020, Trump Jr. shared a ''Breitbart News'' article about more than 800 dead people voting in Michigan which was framed to suggest that the ballots were not legitimately cast and thus evidence of extensive voter fraud; however, the voters in question died after submitting the ballots, and the ballots were rejected by Michigan authorities who knew the voters had died before the election date. In September 2020, he again pushed false claims about voter fraud by asserting, "The radical left are laying the groundwork to steal this election from my father." He added: "Their plan is to add millions of fraudulent ballots that can cancel your vote and overturn the election," and asked "able-bodied" people to join an election security "army" for his father. Facebook and Twitter affixed labels to the video which pointed to accurate information about voting. In November 2020, after
Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfize ...
announced that it had developed a
COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19). Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...
with 90% effectiveness, Trump Jr. suggested that the vaccine had been held back in order to hurt his father's chances of winning the election. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla dismissed the suggestion, saying that the company had always planned to rely on the "speed of science." After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Trump Jr. amplified baseless Russian state propaganda which claimed that the US and Ukraine were developing biological weapons.


COVID-19 misinformation

Trump Jr. was given a 12-hour restriction by Twitter in July 2020 after he promoted misinformation about
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
by retweeting a video showing
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...
doctor Stella Immanuel promoting hydroxychloroquine as a cure despite conflicting studies, and claiming that masks are unnecessary. Twitter later said that it restricted the ability to tweet or retweet for twelve hours for violating its COVID-19 misinformation policy. On October 29, 2020, Trump Jr. criticized the media's focus on new infections rather than on deaths, saying on Fox News, "why aren't they talking about deaths? Oh, oh, because the number is almost nothing. Because we've gotten control of this, and we understand how it works." On the day Trump Jr. made that comment, the United States registered roughly 1,000 COVID-19 deaths.


Other

In 2016, Trump Jr. posted a photo on
Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
featuring a Trump version of
Pepe the Frog Pepe the Frog () is an Internet meme consisting of a green anthropomorphic frog with a humanoid body. Pepe originated in a 2005 comic by Matt Furie called ''Boy's Club''. It became an Internet meme when its popularity steadily grew across Myspa ...
, an internet meme used by white nationalists and
white supremacists White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
. Trump Jr. defended the post and called criticism of it "ridiculous". On October 31, 2017, Trump Jr. tweeted that he would take away half his three-year-old daughter's
Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observan ...
candy because, he wrote, "it's never too early to teach her about socialism." On November 7, 2017, he posted tweets urging voters in Virginia's gubernatorial election to vote "tomorrow", the day after the election. In November 2019, Trump Jr. tweeted the name of the alleged whistleblower who brought to light the Trump-Ukraine scandal. Whistleblower conventions are intended to protect the identity of individuals who expose wrongdoing in government.
Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse (AFP) is a French international news agency headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1835 as Havas, it is the world's oldest news agency. AFP has regional headquarters in Nicosia, Montevideo, Hong Kong and Washington, ...
attempted to independently verify the identity that Trump Jr. tweeted, but was unable to do so. In June 2020, during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, Trump Jr. accused liberals of hypocrisy, for imposing restrictive measures and social distancing guidelines on businesses while holding the "Action for Black Trans Lives" protest for the rights of African-American transgender people. Trump Jr. has accused
big tech Big Tech, also known as the Tech Giants, refers to the most dominant companies in the information technology industry, mostly located in the United States. The term also refers to the four or five largest American tech companies, called the Big ...
companies of being biased against conservatives and has claimed that a deep state sought to undermine Trump during his presidency.


Attempts to overturn the 2020 election

Trump has had a prominent role in his father's
attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election After Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election, then-incumbent Donald Trump pursued an unprecedented effort to overturn the election, with support and assistance from his campaign, proxies, political allies, and many of ...
since November 2020. He has threatened Republican lawmakers who did not help his father overturn the election. In November 2020, he advocated "
total war Total war is a type of warfare that includes any and all civilian-associated resources and infrastructure as legitimate military targets, mobilizes all of the resources of society to fight the war, and gives priority to warfare over non-com ...
" instead of completion of vote counting in the
2020 United States elections The 2020 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Democratic presidential nominee, former vice president Joe Biden, defeated incumbent Republican president Donald Trump in the presidential election. Despite losing seats ...
. CNN reported in April 2022 that two days after the election, Trump Jr. sent a text message to White House Chief of Staff
Mark Meadows Mark Randall Meadows (born July 28, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 29th White House chief of staff from 2020 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the U.S. representative for North Carolina's 11th c ...
outlining paths to subvert the Electoral College process and ensure his father a second term. He wrote, "It's very simple. We have multiple paths. We control them all. We have operational control. Total leverage. Moral high ground. POTUS must start second term now." He continued, "Republicans control 28 states Democrats 22 states. Once again Trump wins," adding, "We either have a vote WE control and WE win OR it gets kicked to Congress 6 January 2021." Biden had not yet been declared the winner at the time of the text.


Relation to the 2021 Capitol riot

Together with his father and other speakers, on January 6, 2021, Trump Jr. spoke to an audience and, speaking about reluctant GOP lawmakers saying, "If you're gonna be the zero and not the hero, we're coming for you." President Trump further incited the crowd which then marched to the
US Capitol building The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill at ...
, where they forced entry, broke windows and vandalized the building. One woman was killed, and a police officer and three other people died during or shortly after the incursion.
Television host A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garne ...
and former congressman Joe Scarborough called for the arrest of Trump Jr., along with his father and Rudolph Giuliani, for
insurrection Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...
against the United States. Following his father's permanent ban from
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
on January 8, 2021, Donald Trump Jr. claimed that
free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
"no longer exists in America." On March 5, 2021, Representative Eric Swalwell filed a civil lawsuit against Trump Jr. and three others (his father, Representative Mo Brooks, and
Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 19 ...
), seeking damages for their alleged role in inciting the riot. In December 2021, text messages released by Meadows revealed that Trump Jr. begged Meadows to persuade his father to stop the attack.


Criminal investigation

On January 11, 2021, D.C.
attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
Karl Racine Karl Anthony Racine (born December 14, 1962) is a Haitian-American lawyer and politician. He is the first independently elected Attorney General of the District of Columbia, a position he has held since January 2015. Before that, he was the mana ...
said that Donald Trump Jr. is a
person of interest "Person of interest" is a term used by law enforcement in the United States, Canada, and other countries when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime. It has no le ...
in the criminal investigation of the attack on the U.S. Capitol and that he is looking at whether to charge him, along with
Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 19 ...
and Mo Brooks, with inciting the violent attack.


Fraud investigation

On January 14, 2021, it became known that Trump Jr. is a person of interest in the
criminal investigation Criminal investigation is an applied science that involves the study of facts that are then used to inform criminal trials. A complete criminal investigation can include searching, interviews, interrogations, evidence collection and preservat ...
into misuse of his father's inaugural funds in Washington D.C., and that
prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...
s intend to interview him over his role in "grossly overpaying" for use of event space at the Trump Hotel in Washington for the 2017 inauguration.


Books


''Triggered: How the Left Thrives on Hate and Wants to Silence Us''

In 2019, Trump Jr. released the book, '' Triggered: How the Left Thrives on Hate and Wants to Silence Us''. The book is critical of
political correctness ''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
, and argues that the American left has a victimhood complex. ''The Washington Post'' commented: "yet, in his telling, the real victim is often him, his father or another Trump family member." In the book, Trump Jr. pushes conspiracy theories about how the intelligence community has attempted to harm President Trump, comparing President Trump's experiences with the FBI harassment campaign against civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Trump Jr. wrote of a visit to
Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...
(a military cemetery), commenting that he got emotional looking at the graves and that it reminded him of "all the sacrifices" the Trump family had made, including "voluntarily giving up a huge chunk of our business and all international deals to avoid the appearance that we were 'profiting off of the office'". Fact-checkers have reported that Trump still owns the family business, and that the Trump family have continued to engage in international business deals since Trump became president. In a review for ''The Washington Post'', Carlos Lozada said that it "fails as memoir and as polemic: Its analysis is facile, its hypocrisy relentless, its self-awareness marginal. (The writing is wretched, even by the standards of political vanity projects.)" The book was a ''New York Times'' best-seller. The book was purchased in bulk by at least nine Republican organizations, candidates or advocacy groups, including N.R.C.C. and the RNC which bought $75,000 and $100,000 worth of the books, respectively. Turning Point USA and the National Republican Senatorial Committee purchased approximately 2,000 and 2,500 books, respectively.


''Liberal Privilege: Joe Biden and the Democrats' Defense of the Indefensible''

In 2020, Trump Jr. self-published the book ''Liberal Privilege: Joe Biden and the Democrats' Defense of the Indefensible''. Trump Jr. reportedly hired three researchers to collect information about Joe Biden and spent three months writing the book. Trump Jr. explained to ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' his reasons: "While I had no plans for a book this year, I was stuck indoors like the rest of the nation during the pandemic," he said, adding that he "decided to highlight Biden's half century of being a swamp monster, since the media wouldn't do it." The same article stated that he decided to self-publish because he could count on the publicity of "his own platformand the promise of bulk purchases from the RNC". The book was indeed bought in bulk by the RNC. On October 28, 2020, the RNC paid over $300,000 of donor money to Pursuit Venture LLC, a company owned by Trump Jr., for "donor mementos." It was the most money the RNC had ever paid for this purpose. The hardcover retails for $29.99, which suggests roughly how many copies might have been purchased, and the RNC's intent was to give a copy to people who donated $50–$100.


Personal life


Family

In 2003, Trump Jr. began dating model Vanessa Kay Haydon at his father's suggestion. The couple married on November 12, 2005, at his father's Mar-a-Lago estate in
Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intrac ...
; the service was officiated by Trump Jr.'s aunt, Judge
Maryanne Trump Barry Maryanne Trump Barry (born April 5, 1937) is an American attorney and a retired United States federal judge. She became an Assistant United States Attorney in 1974, and was first appointed to the United States District Court for the District of ...
. Haydon's grandfather was Danish jazz musician
Kai Ewans Kai Peter Anthon Ewans (né Nielsen; April 10, 1906 – April 4, 1988) was a Danish-American jazz reedist. Ewans was born in Hørsholm, Denmark. He played initially as a banjoist, but switched to saxophone in 1923 when he formed the Blues Jazz Ban ...
. They have five children: daughter Kai Madison (b. May 2007), son Donald John III (b. February 2009), son Tristan Milos (b. October 2011), son Spencer Frederick (b. October 2012), and daughter Chloe Sophia (b. June 2014). The oldest daughter, Kai, is named after Kai's great-grandfather,
Kai Ewans Kai Peter Anthon Ewans (né Nielsen; April 10, 1906 – April 4, 1988) was a Danish-American jazz reedist. Ewans was born in Hørsholm, Denmark. He played initially as a banjoist, but switched to saxophone in 1923 when he formed the Blues Jazz Ban ...
. On March 15, 2018, it was announced that the couple had separated and she had filed for uncontested divorce in
Manhattan Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...
. However, later it was revealed that the divorce was contested. The complaint was secret except for the title of the case. On February 22, 2019, they announced that they settled their divorce at the end of 2018. Since 2018, Trump Jr. has been dating Kimberly Guilfoyle. Guilfoyle had been friends with the Trump family for years. The two reportedly became engaged on December 31, 2020, though news of the engagement was not made public until January 2022. In December 2021, Trump Jr. switched his official residency from New York to Florida.


Hunting

Trump Jr. is an enthusiastic
hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
. Controversy erupted in 2012 when the pictures he had taken of his hunting trophies in 2010 were published, including by
Mia Farrow Maria de Lourdes Villiers "Mia" Farrow ( ; born February 9, 1945) is an American actress. She first gained notice for her role as Allison MacKenzie in the television soap opera '' Peyton Place'' and gained further recognition for her subsequent ...
, who reposted them in 2015 and 2019. Trump Jr. responded by saying "I'm not going to run and hide because the
peta Peta or PETA may refer to: Acronym * Pembela Tanah Air, a militia established by the occupying Japanese in Indonesia in 1943 * People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, an American animal rights organization * People Eating Tasty Animals, a ...
'' ic' crazies don't like me." In one photo, Trump Jr. has his arms around a dead leopard; in another, he is holding a knife in one hand and a bloody elephant tail in the other. Although the hunt was legal, anti-hunting activists criticized him. At least one sponsor dropped his father's TV show '' The Celebrity Apprentice''. On
Earth Day Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally by EarthDay.org (formerly Earth Day Network) including 1 b ...
in 2017, Trump Jr. legally hunted
prairie dog Prairie dogs (genus ''Cynomys'') are herbivorous Burrow, burrowing Marmotini , ground squirrels native to the grasslands of North America. Within the genus are five species: black-tailed prairie dog, black-tailed, white-tailed prairie dog, wh ...
s in Montana with GOP Congressional candidate
Greg Gianforte Gregory Richard Gianforte (born April 17, 1961) is an American businessman, politician, software engineer, and writer serving as the 25th governor of Montana since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Gianforte served as the U.S. represent ...
. Controversy over Trump Jr.'s big game hunting exploits surfaced again in November 2017, following the Trump administration's decision to allow "importing elephant heads, feet and other body parts severed as trophies after the animals are shot for sport in Zimbabwe." Within hours, President Trump reversed the decision to allow elephant trophies imported from
Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
and
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
, pending further review. By March 2018 President Trump quietly lifted the ban again, allowing elephant trophies to be imported.
ProPublica ProPublica (), legally Pro Publica, Inc., is a nonprofit organization based in New York City. In 2010, it became the first online news source to win a Pulitzer Prize, for a piece written by one of its journalists''The Guardian'', April 13, 2010P ...
revealed on December 11, 2019, that the government of
Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million ...
retroactively granted Trump Jr. a hunting permit for the endangered Argali mountain sheep. The sheep hunt and travel to
Ulaanbaatar Ulaanbaatar (; mn, Улаанбаатар, , "Red Hero"), previously anglicized as Ulan Bator, is the capital and most populous city of Mongolia. It is the coldest capital city in the world, on average. The municipality is located in north ce ...
for a private meeting with Mongolian president
Khaltmaagiin Battulga Khaltmaagiin Battulga (; mn, Халтмаагийн Баттулга, Haltmaagiin Battulga, , also referred to as Battulga Khaltmaa; born 3 March 1963) is a Mongolian politician and sambo wrestler who served as the 5th President of Mongolia fr ...
cost US taxpayers $76,859.36 for
United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security charged with conducting criminal investigations and protecting U.S. political leaders, their families, and ...
protection, according to two
Freedom of Information Act Freedom of Information Act may refer to the following legislations in different jurisdictions which mandate the national government to disclose certain data to the general public upon request: * Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Australian act * ...
requests by the
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) and nonpartisan U.S. government ethics and accountability watchdog organization.''Washington Information Directory 2017-2018''; CQ Press; 2017; Pg. 327 Founded ...
(CREW).
Humane Society International Humane Society International (HSI) is the international division of The Humane Society of the United States. Founded in 1991, HSI has expanded The HSUS's activities into Central and South America, Africa, and Asia. HSI's Asian, Australian, Cana ...
wildlife vice president Teresa Telecky said, "For trophy hunters to travel to Mongolia to kill a beautiful and endangered ram is an absolute outrage." In February 2020 Trump agreed to go on a hunting trip in
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...
with the winner of a fundraising auction for the
Safari Club International Safari Club International (SCI) is a US organization composed of hunters dedicated to protecting the freedom to hunt. SCI has more than 50,000 members and 180 local chapters. SCI members agree to abide by the organization's code of ethics, whi ...
.


Health

On November 20, 2020, Trump Jr. tested positive for
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
. After testing positive, Trump Jr. went into isolation.


See also

*
Business projects of Donald Trump in Russia Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separa ...
* Mueller report * *
Stormy Daniels–Donald Trump scandal On January 12, 2018, '' The Wall Street Journal'' reported that in October 2016, just before the 2016 United States presidential election, Michael Cohen, lawyer for then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, arranged a payment of $130,000 to ad ...
* Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections ** Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections (July 2016 – election day) * Timeline of investigations into Donald Trump and Russia


Notes


References


External links


Trump Organization biography
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trump, Donald Jr. 1977 births Living people 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American writers American business executives American conspiracy theorists American construction businesspeople American hunters American nationalists American people of Austrian descent American people of German descent American people of Moravian descent American people of Scottish descent American real estate businesspeople Buckley School (New York City) alumni Businesspeople from New York City Children of presidents of the United States Critics of Black Lives Matter The Hill School alumni New York (state) Republicans Participants in American reality television series Right-wing populism in the United States
Donald Jr Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...
The Trump Organization employees Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania alumni Children of Donald Trump