Donald John Trump Jr. (born December 31, 1977), often nicknamed Don Jr., is an American businessman and political activist. He is the eldest child of U.S. president
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
and his first wife
Ivana
Ivana is a feminine given name of Slavic origin that is also popular in southern Ireland, France, French-speaking Canada, the Mediterranean and Latin America. It is the feminine form of the name Ivan, which are both the Slavic cognates of the n ...
.
Trump serves as a
trustee
Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...
and executive vice president of
the Trump Organization
The Trump Organization, Inc. is an American Conglomerate (company), conglomerate. Privately owned by Donald Trump, it serves as the holding company for most of Business career of Donald Trump, Trump's business ventures and investments, with ar ...
, running the company alongside his younger brother
Eric
The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization).
The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-N ...
. During their
father's first presidency, the brothers continued to engage in deals and investments in foreign countries and collect payments at their U.S. properties from foreign governments, despite pledging not to do so.
He also served as a boardroom judge on the
reality TV
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 199 ...
show featuring his father, ''
The Apprentice''. In addition, he authored ''
Triggered'' in 2019 and ''
Liberal Privilege'' in 2020.
Trump was active in his
father's 2016 presidential campaign. He 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, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
in the
2016 presidential election. Trump campaigned for several Republicans during the
2018 midterm elections.
He has promoted several
conspiracy theories
A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources:
*
...
.
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 whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...
he called for "
total war
Total war is a type of warfare that includes any and all (including civilian-associated) resources and infrastructure as legitimate military targets, mobilises all of the resources of society to fight the war, and gives priority to warfare ov ...
" as the results were counted and promoted the
stolen election conspiracy theory. Following his father's defeat, he engaged in
attempts to overturn the results.
He spoke at the
rally
Rally or rallye may refer to:
Gatherings
* Political demonstration, a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade
* Pep rally, an event held at a North American school or college sporting event
Sport ...
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 Karl Racine said that he is looking at whether to charge Donald Trump Jr. with
inciting the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol in the criminal investigation into the attack.
CNN
Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
reported in April 2022 that two days after the election, Trump Jr. sent a text message to
White House Chief of Staff
The White House chief of staff is the head of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, a position in the federal government of the United States.
The chief of staff is a Political appointments in the United States, politi ...
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 under the Trump administration. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the U.S. representat ...
outlining paths to subvert the
Electoral College
An electoral college is a body whose task is to elect a candidate to a particular office. It is mostly used in the political context for a constitutional body that appoints the head of state or government, and sometimes the upper parliament ...
process and ensure his father a second term.
At the
2024 Republican National Convention
The 2024 Republican National Convention was an event in which delegates of the Republican Party (United States), United States Republican Party selected the party's nominees for President of the United States, president and Vice President of ...
, he led the introductions of
JD Vance
James David Vance (born James Donald Bowman, August2, 1984) is an American politician, author, attorney, and Marine Corps veteran who is the 50th vice president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republic ...
, who had been selected as Donald Trump's running mate.
Early life
Trump was born on December 31, 1977, in
Manhattan
Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
, New York City, to
Ivana
Ivana is a feminine given name of Slavic origin that is also popular in southern Ireland, France, French-speaking Canada, the Mediterranean and Latin America. It is the feminine form of the name Ivan, which are both the Slavic cognates of the n ...
and
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
.
He has two younger siblings,
Ivanka and
Eric
The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization).
The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-N ...
. 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 Knauss Trump (born Melanija Knavs, April26, 1970) is a Slovenian and American former model who is married to U.S. President Donald Trump. Since 2025, Melania Trump has served as the first lady of the United States, a role she previous ...
. 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. He was the father of the 45th and 47th U.S. president, Donald Trump.
Born in the Bronx in New York City to Germans, German ...
and
Mary Anne MacLeod
Mary Anne Trump ( MacLeod; ; May 10, 1912 – August 7, 2000) was a Scottish-American socialite and philanthropist, who was the wife of the real-estate developer Fred Trump and the mother of five children, including U.S. president Donald Trum ...
, and a great-grandson of
Frederick Trump
Frederick Trump (born Friedrich Trump; ; March 14, 1869 – May 30, 1918) was a German-American businessman. He was the patriarch of the Trump family and the paternal grandfather of the 45th and 47th U.S. president, Donald Trump.
Born and rais ...
and
Elizabeth Christ Trump
Elizabeth Trump (; ; October 10, 1880 – June 6, 1966) was a German-American businesswoman. In 1902, she married Frederick Trump, who died in 1918. After his death, she co-founded the real estate development company E. Trump & Son with the ...
, the latter of whom 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 ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
, where he spent summers camping, fishing, hunting and learning the
Czech language
Czech ( ; ), historically known as Bohemian ( ; ), is a West Slavic language of the Czech–Slovak group, written in Latin script. Spoken by over 12 million people including second language speakers, it serves as the official language of the ...
.
His parents divorced when he was 12 years old due to his father having an
extramarital affair
An affair is a relationship typically between two people, one or both of whom are either married or in a long-term monogamous or emotionally-exclusive relationship with someone else. The affair can be solely sexual, solely physical or solely em ...
. 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, a college preparatory boarding school in
Pottstown, Pennsylvania, followed by the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
's (Penn)
Wharton School
The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...
, where he graduated in 2000 with a
B.S. in
Economics
Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
.
Career

After graduating from
Penn in 2000, Trump moved to
Aspen, Colorado
Aspen is the List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city that is the county seat and the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population ...
, where he hunted, fished, skied, lived in a truck, and worked as a bartender for a year, before returning to join the
Trump Organization
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021.
...
in New York. Trump has supervised building projects, which included
40 Wall Street
40 Wall Street (also the Trump Building; formerly the Bank of Manhattan Trust Building and Manhattan Company Building) is a neo-Gothic skyscraper on Wall Street between Nassau and William streets in the Financial District of Manhattan in Ne ...
,
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 was designed by Goldner and Goldner in 1929. It now contains 120 luxury Condominium (living sp ...
,
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
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is an American private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 92 independently incorporated local BBB organizati ...
.
He appeared as a guest adviser and judge on many episodes of his father's reality television show ''
The Apprentice'', 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 wikt:interest#Noun, interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates t ...
.
Amid the
Trump–Ukraine scandal – where Trump asked the Ukrainian president to investigate
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
and his son
Hunter Biden
Robert Hunter Biden (born February4, 1970) is an American attorney and businessman. He is the second son of former president Joe Biden and his first wife, Neilia Hunter Biden. Hunter Biden was a founding board member of BHR Partners, a Chine ...
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 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 not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City.
Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
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'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' 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
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021.
...
apartments in
Gurgaon
Gurgaon (), officially named Gurugram (), is a satellite city of Delhi and administrative headquarters of Gurgaon district, located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest ...
before February 20 would be invited to have a "conversation and dinner" with Trump Jr. The ads were criticized by corruption watchdogs as unethical.
A ruling which was handed down on February 16, 2024 barred Trump from serving as an officer or director of any New York corporation or other legal entity in New York, including the Trump Organization, for two years.
In November 2024, Trump announced that he would be joining
1789 Capital as a partner. In 2025, he announced that the firm would invest in the
Enhanced Games, a proposed sports event that will allow
performance enhancing drugs.
In December 2024, it was announced that Trump was joining the board of directors of
PublicSquare.
Podcast
In 2023, Trump launched a podcast, ''Triggered with Don Jr'', on the platform
Rumble.
Executive Branch private membership club
In April 2025, the ''Executive Branch'', a Washington, D.C., private membership club opened with a party that was reported to have included members of the
Trump administration, "wealthy CEOs, tech founders, and policy experts". The club was co-founded by Trump,
David O. Sacks,
Cameron Winklevoss
Cameron Howard Winklevoss (born August 21, 1981) is an American cryptocurrency investor, former Olympic Games, Olympic Rowing (sport), rower, and cofounder of Winklevoss Capital Management and Gemini (company), Gemini cryptocurrency exchange. He ...
, and
Tyler Winklevoss
Tyler Howard Winklevoss (born August 21, 1981) is an American investor, founder of Winklevoss Capital Management and Gemini cryptocurrency exchange and former Olympic rower. Winklevoss co-founded HarvardConnection (later renamed ConnectU) ...
, and is owned by Trump,
Omeed Malik, Chris Buskirk of
Rockbridge Network and
1789 Capital, and Alex and Steve Witkoff, sons of
Steve Witkoff
Steven Charles Witkoff (born March 15, 1957) is an American real estate investor and lawyer who has served as the Ambassadors of the United States#Special envoys, representatives, and coordinators, United States Special Envoy to the Middle East ...
.
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'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' 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 Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...
, along with his siblings Ivanka, Eric and Tiffany.
Trump Jr. influenced his father's choice of
Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke
Ryan Keith Zinke ( ; born November 1, 1961) is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. representative for since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Zinke served in the Montana Senate from 2009 to 2013 and as the U.S. re ...
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 Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...
''.
Trump Tower 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
Trump Tower is a 58-story, mixed-use condominium skyscraper at 721–725 Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, between East 56th and 57th Streets. The building contains the headquarters for the Trump Organiza ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
, 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 is a son-in-law of the president of the United States, Donald Trump, through his marriage to Ivanka Trump and served as a senior advisor in his father-in- ...
, and
Paul Manafort
Paul John Manafort Jr. (; born April 1, 1949) is an American former lobbyist, political consultant, and attorney. A long-time Republican Party campaign consultant, he chaired the Trump presidential campaign from June to August 2016. Manafo ...
and Russian lawyer
Natalia Veselnitskaya, her translator Anatoli Samochornov, Russian-American lobbyist
Rinat Akhmetshin, and
Ike Kaveladze, a
Georgian-American, U.S.-based senior vice president at Crocus Group, the real estate development company run by
Aras Agalarov.
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, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
.
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 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 University, Mueller served a ...
, the
special counsel 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), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
and
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
who offered help to the Trump presidential campaign.
The meeting included
Joel Zamel, an Israeli specialist in
social media manipulation;
George Nader, an envoy representing the crown princes of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia; and American businessman
Erik Prince
Erik Dean Prince (born June 6, 1969) is an American businessman, investor, author, and former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, and the founder of the private military company Blackwater. He served as Blackwater's CEO until 2009 and as its chairman u ...
.
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. He came to international attention in 2010 after WikiLeaks published a series of News leak, leaks from Chels ...
had used the
WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks () is a non-profit media organisation and publisher of leaked documents. It is funded by donations and media partnerships. It has published classified documents and other media provided by anonymous sources. It was founded in 2006 by ...
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 a made-up claim by
True Pundit that Hillary Clinton had wanted to attack Assange with drones. WikiLeaks also shared a link to a website that would help people search through the
hacked e-mails of Clinton campaign manager
John Podesta
John David Podesta Jr. (born January 8, 1949) is an American political consultant who served as Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy from 2024 to 2025, having previously served as the Senior Advisor to the President ...
, 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 former real estate developer who represented Montana in the United States House of Representatives from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Republican Party, Rosendale ser ...
,
Patrick Morrisey
Patrick James Morrisey (born December 21, 1967) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 37th governor of West Virginia since 2025. He served as the 34th attorney general of West Virginia from 2013 to 2025. A member of the Repub ...
,
Mike Braun
Michael Braun (born March 24, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 52nd governor of Indiana since 2025. A member of the Republican Party, he served from 2019 to 2025 as a United States senator from Indiana and from 2 ...
,
Ron DeSantis
Ronald Dion DeSantis (; born September 14, 1978) is an American politician, attorney, and former United States Navy, naval officer serving as the 46th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Pa ...
,
Lee Zeldin
Lee Michael Zeldin (born January 30, 1980) is an American attorney, politician, and officer in the United States Army Reserve who has been serving as the 17th administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) since January 29, 2025. A m ...
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, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
'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 2007, catapulted into the mainstream by Congressman Ron Paul's presidential campaign. The movement expanded in resp ...
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
Maxine Moore Waters (née Carr; born August 15, 1938) is an American politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 1991. The district, numbered as the California's 29th congressional district, ...
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 private events.
Modern forms of stripping m ...
.
In April 2017, he campaigned for Montana congressional candidate
Greg Gianforte
Gregory Richard Gianforte ( ; born April 17, 1961) is an American politician, businessman, and software engineer serving as the 25th governor of Montana since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Gianforte served as the U.S. representativ ...
, and in May met with
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...
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. For i ...
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
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
after two-term incumbent
Pat Toomey
Patrick Joseph Toomey Jr. (born November 17, 1961) is an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from Pennsylvania from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he served three terms as the U.S. represen ...
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 (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...
'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.
Before his father's loss in the 2020 election, Trump was the subject of speculation for a
2024
The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
run for president. In October 2020, he posted a photo to his Instagram account of a "Don Jr. 2024" flag.
Michael Cohen reimbursement payments
On May 28, 2024, an email was shown during defense closing arguments in Trump Sr.'s
New York criminal trial which revealed that longtime Trump Organization comptroller Jeffrey McConnery, who was previously acknowledged to have organized Trump Sr.'s reimbursement payments to
Michael Cohen following the hush money payments Cohen made to
Stormy Daniels
Stephanie A. Gregory Clifford (born Stephanie A. Gregory; March 17, 1979), known professionally as Stormy Daniels, is an American pornographic film actress, Film director, director and former stripper. She has won many industry awards and is a ...
, sought approval from both Trump Jr. and Eric Trump.
Trump Jr. signed some of the reimbursement checks to Cohen as well.
Views

Race and immigration
During his father's presidential campaign, Trump Jr. caused controversy in 2016 when he posted an image that compared Syrian 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 ...
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 is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...
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, or pretending to be an advocate for political gain.
In September 2016, Trump Jr. cited
Holocaust
The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...
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 an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
depicting a cross between his father and
Pepe the Frog
Pepe the Frog ( ) is a Comics, comic character and Internet meme created by cartoonist Matt Furie. Designed as green anthropomorphic frog with a humanoid body usually wearing a blue tee-shirt, Pepe originated in Furie's 2005 webcomic ''Boy's Cl ...
. When asked on ''
Good Morning America
''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...
'' about Pepe the Frog and its associations with
white supremacy
White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...
, 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 and
Pizzagate 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
Jack Posobiec in July 2019.
Promotion of conspiracy theories
Trump Jr.
retweet
A tweet (officially known as a post since 2023) is a short status update on the social networking site Twitter (officially known as X since 2023) which can include Image, images, Video, videos, GIFs, straw polls, hashtags, Mention (blogging), m ...
ed conspiratorial remarks by white supremacist
Kevin B. MacDonald about alleged
favors exchanged by Hillary Clinton and Switzerland's largest bank.
On the campaign trail, Trump Jr. promoted
Alex Jones
Alexander Emerick Jones (born February 11, 1974) is an American Far-right politics, far-right radio host, radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist. He hosts ''The Alex Jones Show'' from Austin, Texas. ''The Alex Jones Show'' is the lo ...
' conspiracy theory that Hillary Clinton wore an earpiece to a presidential forum and that official unemployment rates were manipulated for political purposes.
In May 2017, Trump Jr. promoted what
CNN
Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
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 and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
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 asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources:
* ...
that survivors of the
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting
On February 14, 2018, a mass shooting occurred when 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, part of the Miami metropolitan area, Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people and injuring 18 ot ...
were coached into propagating anti-Trump rhetoric.
In May 2018, Trump Jr. retweeted a false and
antisemitic
Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...
conspiracy theory that
George Soros
George Soros (born György Schwartz; August 12, 1930) is an American investor and philanthropist. , he has a net worth of US$7.2 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated more than $32 billion to the Open Society Foundat ...
, 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
Roseanne Cherrie Barr (born November 3, 1952), also known mononymously as Roseanne, is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. She began her career in stand-up comedy before gaining acclaim in the television sitcom ''Roseanne'' (19 ...
, whose TV show ''
Roseanne
''Roseanne'' is an American television sitcom created by Matt Williams (producer), Matt Williams that originally aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May ...
'' 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 family separation policy under the First presidency of Donald Trump, first Trump administration was a controversial immigration enforcement strategy implemented in the United States from 2017 to 2018, aimed at Immigration policy of the f ...
were actually actors.
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 who anchors the CNN news broadcast show ''Anderson Cooper 360°''. In addition to his duties at CNN, Cooper serves as a correspondent for ''6 ...
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 commentar ...
'' 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
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
of being a
pedophile. After Biden was diagnosed with prostate cancer in May 2025, Trump Jr. launched a conspiracy theory questioning how
Jill Biden
Jill Tracy Jacobs Biden (née Jacobs; born June 3, 1951) is an American educator who served as the first lady of the United States from 2021 to 2025 as the wife of President Joe Biden. She was second lady of the United States from 2009 to 20 ...
, who received a doctoral degree, missed the signs and whether it was
covered up. Trump Jr.'s response was seen as an outlier compared to other politicians including his father's, and was a subject of criticism. However, he had also
liked a post wishing Biden a speedy recovery, "politics aside."
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 showed 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 corporation, multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered at The Spiral (New York City), The Spiral in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 184 ...
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).
Knowledge about the structure and fun ...
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
Albert Bourla (; born ) is a Greek-American veterinarian and businessman known for serving as the chairman and chief executive officer of the pharmaceutical company Pfizer. He joined the company in 1993 and has held several executive roles across ...
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 the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
by retweeting a video showing
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
doctor
Stella Immanuel promoting
hydroxychloroquine
Hydroxychloroquine, sold under the brand name Plaquenil among others, is a medication used to prevent and treat malaria in areas where malaria remains sensitive to chloroquine. Other uses include treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, an ...
as a cure, despite conflicting studies, and by claiming that masks were unnecessary. Twitter later said that it restricted his ability to tweet or retweet for 12 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 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.
With 2,400 employees of 100 nationalities, AFP has an editorial presence in 260 c ...
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 and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, 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
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
people.
Trump Jr. has accused
big tech
Big Tech, also referred to as the Tech Giants or Tech Titans, is a collective term for the largest and most influential technology companies in the world. The label draws a parallel to similar classifications in other industries, such as "Big Oi ...
companies of being biased against conservatives and has claimed that a
deep state
Deep state is a term used for (real or imagined) potential, unauthorized and often secret networks of power operating independently of a State (polity), state's political leadership in pursuit of their own agendas and goals.
Although the term ori ...
sought to undermine Trump during his presidency.
Attempts to overturn the 2020 election
Trump had a prominent role in his father's
, threatening Republican lawmakers who did not take part in it. In November 2020, he advocated "
total war
Total war is a type of warfare that includes any and all (including civilian-associated) resources and infrastructure as legitimate military targets, mobilises all of the resources of society to fight the war, and gives priority to warfare ov ...
" instead of completion of vote counting in the
2020 United States elections
Elections in the United States, Elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party's nominee, former Vice presidents of the United States, vice president Joe Biden, defeated incu ...
.
CNN reported in April 2022 that two days after the election, Trump Jr. sent a text message to
White House Chief of Staff
The White House chief of staff is the head of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, a position in the federal government of the United States.
The chief of staff is a Political appointments in the United States, politi ...
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 under the Trump administration. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the U.S. representat ...
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 January 6 Capitol attack
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 United States Congress, the legislative branch of the federal government. It is located on Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall in W ...
, where they
forced entry
Forcible entry is "the unlawful taking of possession of real property by force or threats of force or unlawful entry into or onto another's property, especially when accompanied by force". The term is also sometimes used for entry by military, pol ...
, 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 or hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. It is common for people who garnered fam ...
and former congressman
Joe Scarborough called for the arrest of Trump Jr., along with his father and Rudolph Giuliani, for
insurrection
Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
against the United States.
Following his father's permanent ban from
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
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 recognise ...
"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
Morris Jackson Brooks Jr. (born April 29, 1954) is an American attorney and politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2023. His district was based in Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsvill ...
, and
Rudy Giuliani
Rudolph William Louis Giuliani ( , ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...
), 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 (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
Karl Racine 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 leg ...
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 Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...
and
Mo Brooks
Morris Jackson Brooks Jr. (born April 29, 1954) is an American attorney and politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2023. His district was based in Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsvill ...
, 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 Search and seizure, searching, interviews, interrogations, Evidence (law), ...
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 adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...
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.
In May of 2022, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine reached a $750,000 settlement with the inaugural committee without requiring an admission of wrongdoing.
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 to P.C.) is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in society. ...
, 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
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
harassment campaign against civil rights leader
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...
Trump Jr. wrote of a visit to
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia.
...
(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
Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is an American nonprofit organization that advocates for Conservatism in the United States, conservative politics on high school, college, and university campuses. It was founded in 2012 by Charlie Kirk and Bill Montgo ...
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
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
and spent three months writing the book.
Trump Jr. explained to ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' 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
Mar-a-Lago ( , ) is a resort and National Historic Landmark on a barrier island in Palm Beach, Florida, United States. It spans 126 rooms and built on of land. Since 1985, it has been owned by Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of t ...
estate in
Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...
; the service was officiated by Trump Jr.'s aunt, Judge
Maryanne Trump Barry. Haydon's grandfather was Danish jazz musician
Kai Ewans.
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 her maternal great-grandfather, Kai Ewans.
Kai Trump was introduced by her father and spoke at the
2024 Republican National Convention
The 2024 Republican National Convention was an event in which delegates of the Republican Party (United States), United States Republican Party selected the party's nominees for President of the United States, president and Vice President of ...
on July 17.
On March 15, 2018, it was announced that the couple had separated and Haydon had filed for
uncontested divorce in
Manhattan Supreme Court.
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.
In 2018, Trump Jr. started dating
Kimberly Guilfoyle
Kimberly Ann Guilfoyle ( ; born March 9, 1969) is an American television news personality and former prosecutor in San Francisco and Los Angeles. She served as an advisor and led the fundraising division of President Donald Trump's 2020 presid ...
.
Guilfoyle had been friends with the Trump family for years. The two reportedly became engaged on December 31, 2020, Trump Jr.'s 43rd birthday. However, news of the engagement was not made public until January 2022. Trump Jr. and Guilfoyle mutually ended their engagement sometime in 2024.
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 practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
. 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 (TV series), Peyton Place'' and gained further recogn ...
, who reposted them in 2015 and 2019. Trump Jr. responded by saying "I'm not going to run and hide because the
peta
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA; ) is an American animal rights nonprofit organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president.
Founded in March 1980 by Newkirk and animal right ...
''
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 television 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 through earthday.org (formerly Earth Day Network) includin ...
in 2017, Trump Jr. legally hunted
prairie dog
Prairie dogs (genus ''Cynomys'') are herbivorous burrowing Marmotini, ground squirrels native to the grasslands of North America. There are five recognized species of prairie dog: black-tailed prairie dog, black-tailed, white-tailed prairie dog ...
s in Montana with GOP Congressional candidate
Greg Gianforte
Gregory Richard Gianforte ( ; born April 17, 1961) is an American politician, businessman, and software engineer serving as the 25th governor of Montana since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Gianforte served as the U.S. representativ ...
.
ProPublica
ProPublica (), legally Pro Publica, Inc., is a nonprofit investigative journalism organization based in New York City. ProPublica's investigations are conducted by its staff of full-time reporters, and the resulting stories are distributed to ne ...
revealed on December 11, 2019, that the government of
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
retroactively granted Trump Jr. a hunting permit for the endangered
Argali mountain sheep. The sheep hunt and travel to
Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities in Mongolia, most populous city of Mongolia. It has a population of 1.6 million, and it is the coldest capital city in the world by average yearly temperature. The municipa ...
for a private meeting with Mongolian president
Khaltmaagiin Battulga
Khaltmaagiin 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 from 2017 to 2021. He served as Member of the State Great Khural fr ...
cost U.S. 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 tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to American political leaders, thei ...
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 (United States) of 1966
* F ...
requests by the
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), is a progressive nonprofit 501(c)(3) watchdog organization devoted to U.S. government ethics and accountability.''Washington Information Directory 2017-2018''; CQ Press; 2017; Pg. 327 ...
(CREW).
Humane Society International
Humane World for Animals, formerly called Humane Society International (HSI) was founded in 1991 as the international division of The Humane Society of the United States. HSI expanded the HSUS's activities into Central and South America, Afr ...
wildlife vice president Teresa Telecky said, "For
trophy hunter
Trophy hunting is a form of hunting for sport in which parts of the hunted wild animals are kept and displayed as trophies. The animal being targeted, known as the "game", is typically a mature male specimen from a popular species of collectable ...
s to travel to Mongolia to kill a beautiful and endangered ram is an absolute outrage".
In February 2020, Trump Jr. agreed to go on a hunting trip in
Alaska
Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
with the winner of a fundraising auction for
Safari Club International.
See also
*
Business projects of Donald Trump in Russia
*
Mueller report
*
**
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 activists
American political writers
American businesspeople in real estate
Buckley School (New York City) alumni
Businesspeople from New York City
Donald
Donald is a Scottish masculine given name. It is 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 misinter ...
The Hill School alumni
New York (state) Republicans
Participants in American reality television series
People associated with the 2016 United States presidential election
People associated with the 2020 United States presidential election
People associated with the 2024 United States presidential election
Protesters in or near the January 6 United States Capitol attack
Donald Jr
Donald is a Scottish masculine given name. It is 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 misinter ...
The Trump Organization employees
Wharton School alumni
Writers from New York City