Donald J. Trump Quotes
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Donald John Trump is the 45th and current President of the United States, in office since January 20, 2017. Before entering politics, he was a businessman and television personality.

Trump was born in the New York City borough of Queens. He earned an economics degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. A third-generation businessman, Trump followed in the footsteps of his grandmother Elizabeth and father Fred in running the family real estate company. He served as chairman and president of The Trump Organization from 1971 until his inauguration as president in January 2017, when he delegated company management to his sons Donald Jr. and Eric. Trump's business career primarily focused on building or renovating office towers, hotels, casinos, and golf courses.

Trump also started several side ventures and branded various products with his name. He is credited as having written or co-written several books , and produced and hosted The Apprentice television series for 12 years. As of 2017, he was the 544th richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of $3.5 billion.

Trump had long expressed interest in politics. He entered the 2016 presidential race as a Republican and defeated sixteen opponents in the primaries. Commentators described his political positions as populist, protectionist, and nationalist. His campaign received extensive free media coverage; many of his public statements were controversial or false. Trump won the general election on November 8, 2016, in a surprise victory against Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. He became the oldest and wealthiest person ever to assume the presidency, the first without prior military or government service, and the fifth to have won the election despite losing the popular vote. His election and policies have sparked numerous protests.

In domestic policy, Trump has unsuccessfully attempted to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. He appointed Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court. He ordered a travel ban on citizens from six Muslim-majority countries, citing security concerns; the ban was partially implemented after several legal challenges. In foreign policy, he withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Paris Climate Agreement, undid parts of the Cuban Thaw, and ordered missile strikes in Syria in response to the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack. After Trump dismissed FBI Director James Comey, the Justice Department appointed Comey's predecessor Robert Mueller as special counsel to investigate Russia's interference in the presidential election, potential links between Russia and Trump campaign associates, and any related matters.

✵ 14. June 1946
Donald J. Trump photo
Donald J. Trump: 904   quotes 24   likes

Donald J. Trump Quotes

“Do you want to set up the meeting? Are they friends of yours?”

Addressing an African-American reporter and referring to the Congressional Black Caucus
Comments made during a news conference at the White House https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/16/us/politics/donald-trump-press-conference-transcript.html?_r=0 (16 February 2017)
2010s, 2017, February

“Little Jon Stewart(?) Is a pussy, he would be hopeless in a debate with me!”

Tweets about Jon Stewart and his choice to change his originally Jewish surname http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/2/13499036/jon-stewart-trump-feud (April-May 2013)
2010s, 2013

“More votes equals a loss…revolution!”

Twitter, , quoted in * 2012-11-07
Trump Tweets A Call For "Revolution" After Obama Victory
Media Matters for America
http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/11/07/trump-tweets-a-call-for-revolution-after-obama/191191
2012-11-10
2010s, 2012

“I have never seen a thin person drinking Diet Coke.”

https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/257552283850653696, quoted in * 2019-10-26 Jeva Lange The 65 worst Trump tweets of the 2010s TheWeek.com https://theweek.com/articles/870368/65-worst-trump-tweets-2010s
Ref: en.wikiquote.org - Donald Trump / Quotes / Donald Trump on social media / Twitter
2010s, 2012

“You know, if you’re young, and in this era, and if you have any guilt about not having gone to Vietnam, we have our own Vietnam—it’s called the dating game… Dating is like being in Vietnam. You’re the equivalent of a soldier going over to Vietnam.”

An interview on The Howard Stern Show, 1993, archived by People https://people.com/politics/trump-boasted-of-avoiding-stds-while-dating-vaginas-are-landmines-it-was-my-personal-vietnam/
1990s

“When the students poured into Tiananmen Square, the Chinese government almost blew it. Then they were vicious, they were horrible, but they put it down with strength. That shows you the power of strength.”

interview with Playboy, March 1990; quoted in the New York Daily News ( Bury Trump in a Landslide http://interactive.nydailynews.com/2016/10/daily-news-editorial-bury-trump-in-landslide/, published October 20, 2016)
1990s

“No, I don't take responsibility at all, because we were given a set of circumstances and we were given rules, regulations and specifications from a different time.”

Asked if he took responsibility for the lag in coronavirus testing
White House press conference, , quoted in * 2020-03-13
'I don't take responsibility at all': Trump pushes back on complaints about coronavirus testing
Zachary Halaschak
Washington Examiner
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/i-dont-take-responsibility-at-all-trump-pushes-back-on-complaints-about-coronavirus-testing
2020s, 2020, March

“It's going to disappear. One day it's like a miracle, it will disappear. And from our shores, we — you know, it could get worse before it gets better. It could maybe go away. We'll see what happens. Nobody really knows.”

Regarding coronavirus

African American History Month reception, White House, , quoted in * 2020-02-29

Inside Trump’s frantic attempts to minimize the coronavirus crisis

Yasmeen Abutaleb, Ashley Parker and Josh Dawsey

Washington Post

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/inside-trumps-frantic-attempts-to-minimize-the-coronavirus-crisis/2020/02/29/7ebc882a-5b25-11ea-9b35-def5a027d470_story.html
2020s, 2020, February

“America is governed by Americans. We reject the ideology of globalism and we embrace the doctrine of patriotism.”

Address to UN General Assembly, quoted in * 2018-09-25
Trump’s Speech at the U.N. Triggers Laughter—and Disbelief
Robin Wright
The New Yorker
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/trumps-speech-at-the-un-triggers-laughterand-disbelief
2010s, 2018, September

“It would be really disappointing — not really — but it would depend on what’s inside the magazine. I don’t think Ivanka would do that, although she does have a very nice figure. I’ve said if Ivanka weren’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her.”

On 7 March 2006 during an appearance on the daytime talk show The View while discussing the possibility of Ivanka Trump’s posing for Playboy magazine. As quoted in Did Donald Trump Say He’d Like to Date His Daughter? https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/donald-trump-date-daughter/ by Dan Evon, 10 July 2015, Snopes, and quoted with video clip in * 2016-10-10
Adam Withnall
Donald Trump's unsettling record of comments about his daughter Ivanka
The Independent
UK
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-elections/donald-trump-ivanka-trump-creepiest-most-unsettling-comments-a-roundup-a7353876.html
2000s

“But as of right now and yesterday, anybody that needs a test — That's the important thing. And the tests are all perfect. Like, the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect. Right? This was not as perfect as that but pretty good.”

Comparing coronavirus tests to his Ukraine phone call that led to his impeachment
during tour of Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, , quoted in * 2020-03-06
Trump Says Coronavirus Testing Is as ‘Perfect’ as His Ukraine Call
Chas Danner
New York
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/03/trump-coronavirus-testing-as-perfect-as-ukraine-call.html
2020s, 2020, March

“And again, when you have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero, that's a pretty good job we've done.”

Regarding known coronavirus cases.
White House press conference, , quoted in * 2020-03-11
Coronavirus: US passes 1,000 cases – two weeks after Trump said number would soon be 'close to zero'
Chris Riotta
The Independent
UK
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/coronavirus-cases-us-map-trump-how-many-infected-a9393061.html
2020s, 2020, February

“We know all the people. We know all the good people. It's a question I asked the doctors before. Some of the people we cut, they haven't been used for many, many years, and if we ever need them, we can get them very quickly. And rather than spending the money — I'm a businessperson, I don't like having thousands of people around when you don't need 'em, when we need 'em, we can get them back very quickly.”

Asked about his consistent budget cuts to the CDC, the NIH, and the WHO.

White House press conference, , quoted in * 2020-02-28

As the World Reaches for Face Masks, Trump Buries His Head in the Sand

Jonathan Chait

New York Magazine

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/02/trump-coronavirus-response.html
2020s, 2020, February

“I've always said, if you run for president, you shouldn't be allowed to use teleprompters. Because you don't even know if the guy is smart.”

Norcross, Georgia, , quoted in * 2016-07-21
Teleprompter Trump: the right temperament or low-energy Donald?
Joe Concha
The Hill
https://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/presidential-campaign/288626-teleprompter-trump-the-right-temperament-or-low
2010s, 2015

“Respirators, ventilators, all of the equipment—try getting it yourselves. We will be backing you, but try getting it yourselves. Point of sales, much better, much more direct if you can get it yourself.”

Call with governors, quoted in * 2020-03-16

Trump tells governors to seek out respirators and other vital equipment on their own.

The New York Times staff

The New York Times

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/16/world/coronavirus-news.html
2020s, 2020, March

“They're trying to scare everybody, from meetings, cancel the meetings, close the schools—you know, destroy the country. And that's okay, as long as we can win the election.”

Fundraiser, Mar-a-Lago, quoted in * 2020-03-15

Trump says media 'scare' coverage of coronavirus response OK 'as long as we can win the election': Report

Daniel Chaitin

Washington Examiner

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/trump-says-media-scare-coverage-of-coronavirus-response-okay-as-long-as-we-can-win-the-election-report
2020s, 2020, March

“I've been briefed on every contingency you can possibly imagine. Many contingencies. A lot of—a lot of positive. Different numbers. All different numbers. Very large numbers. And some small numbers too, by the way.”

Regarding coronavirus. Posed question: "Mr. President, have you been briefed that up to 100 million Americans would ultimately be exposed to the virus?"

Briefing at the White House https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-meeting-republican-senators-2/ ()
2020s, 2020, March

“For some reason we have a certain chemistry — or whatever. Let's see what happens. We have a long way to go. But I'm in no rush... So, I just want to say that we are going to be heading out to the DMZ and it's something I planned long ago but had the idea yesterday to maybe say hello, just shake hands quickly and say hello.”

press conference, Blue House, Seoul, South Korea, quoted in * 2019-06-30

Trump: Kim and I "have a certain chemistry"

CNN

https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-dmz-kim-live-intl-hnk/h_8b23e071903b007d8ff1934be8457d2c
2010s, 2019, June

“The federal government has done something that nobody has done anything like this other than perhaps wartime. And that’s what we’re in: We’re in a war.”

As quoted in Remarks by President Trump in a Meeting with Supply Chain Distributors on COVID-19 https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-meeting-supply-chain-distributors-covid-19/ (March 29, 2020), whitehouse.gov.
2020s, 2020, March

“Nobody could have imagined a thing like this — a tragedy like this would have happened: the invisible enemy.”

As quoted in Remarks by President Trump in a Meeting with Supply Chain Distributors on COVID-19 https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-meeting-supply-chain-distributors-covid-19/ (March 29, 2020), whitehouse.gov.
2020s, 2020, March

“But you know what this does show you? Things happen. Whoever thought of this two weeks ago? Who would’ve thought this could be going on four weeks ago? You wouldn’t. But things happen in life and you have to be prepared and you have to be flexible and you have to be able to go out and get it. And my guys that we have the best professionals in the world, the best in the world and we are so ready. At the same time that I initiated the first federally mandated quarantine in over 50 years. We had a quarantine some people. They weren’t happy, they weren’t happy about it. I want to tell you there are a lot of people that not so happy, but after two weeks they got happy. You know who got happy? The people around them got happy. That’s who got happy.”

Luciana Borio, former director of Medical and Biodefense Preparedness Policy at the National Security Council, said at a symposium at Emory University in Atlanta in 2018: "The threat of pandemic flu is the number one health security concern, are we ready to respond? I fear the answer is no." As quoted in Contrary to Trump’s Claim, A Pandemic Was Widely Expected at Some Point https://www.factcheck.org/2020/03/contrary-to-trumps-claim-a-pandemic-was-widely-expected-at-some-point/ (March 20, 2020) by Rem Rieder, FactCheck.org.
2020s, 2020, February, Donald Trump Charleston, South Carolina Rally (February 28, 2020)

“My administration has taken the most aggressive action in modern history to prevent the spread of this illness in the United States. We are ready. We are ready. Totally ready. On January 31st, I ordered the suspension of foreign nationals who have recently been in China from entering the United States. An action which the Democrats loudly criticized and protested and now everybody’s complimenting me saying, “Thank you very much. You were 100% correct.””

Could’ve been a whole different story. But I say, so let’s get this right. A virus starts in China, bleeds its way into various countries all around the world, doesn’t spread widely at all in the United States because of the early actions that myself and my administration took against a lot of other wishes, and the Democrats’ single talking point, and you see it, is that it’s Donald Trump’s fault, right? It’s Donald Trump’s fault. No, just things that happened.
2020s, 2020, February, Donald Trump Charleston, South Carolina Rally (February 28, 2020)

“One of my people came up to me and said, “Mr. President, they tried to beat you on Russia, Russia, Russia.””

That didn’t work out too well. They couldn’t do it. They tried the impeachment hoax. That was on a perfect conversation. They tried anything. They tried it over and over. They’d been doing it since you got in. It’s all turning. They lost. It’s all turning. Think of it. Think of it. And this is their new hoax. But we did something that’s been pretty amazing. We have 15 people in this massive country and because of the fact that we went early. We went early, we could have had a lot more than that. We’re doing great. Our country is doing so great. We are so unified. We are so unified. The Republican party has never ever been unified like it is now. There has never been a movement in the history of our country like we have now. Never been a movement. So a statistic that we want to talk about, go ahead. Say USA. It’s okay. USA. So a number that nobody heard of, that I heard of recently and I was shocked to hear it, 35,000 people on average die each year from the flu. Did anyone know that? 35,000, that’s a lot of people. It could go to 100,000, it could be 27,000. They say usually a minimum of 27, goes up to 100,000 people a year die. And so far we have lost nobody to coronavirus in the United States. Nobody. And it doesn’t mean we won’t and we are totally prepared. It doesn’t mean we won’t, but think of it. You hear 35 and 40,000 people and we’ve lost nobody and you wonder the press is in hysteria mode. CNN fake news and the camera just went off, the camera. The camera just went off. Turn it back on. Hey, by the way, hold it. Look at this, and honestly, all events are like this. It’s about us. It’s all about us. I wish they’d take the camera, show the arena please. They never do. They never do. They never do it. They never show the arena. You can hear it because when you hear it, that’s not 200 people. That’s not a hundred people. That’s thousands and thousands of people including people outside. You can hear it. They always show my face. See that face? They show my face. I want them to show the arena, not my face, right? [...] While the extreme left has been wasting America’s time with these vile hoaxes, we’ve been killing terrorists, creating jobs, raising wages, enacting fair trade deals, securing our border, and lifting up citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed. We added another 225,000 jobs last month alone. And that makes seven million jobs since our election, seven million. The unemployment rate in the great state of South Carolina. You ever hear of that place?
2020s, 2020, February, Donald Trump Charleston, South Carolina Rally (February 28, 2020)

“We have an invisible enemy. We have a problem a month ago nobody ever thought about. [...] This is a bad one, this is a very bad one. This is bad in the sense that it's so contagious. It's just so contagious. Sort of record-setting type contagion.”

Coronavirus task force press briefing, , quoted in * 2020-03-17

The Last Great Pandemic

Jarrett Stepman

The Daily Signal

https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/03/17/the-last-great-pandemic/
2020s, 2020, March

“It's called "social media."”

It's social media. It gets out. I have, you know, hundreds of millions of people. Number one on Facebook. Did you know I was number one on Facebook? I mean, I just found out I'm number one on Facebook. I thought that was very nice for whatever it means. No, it represents something. And when I can explain to people: Just don't do it. You know, it's going to be bad if you do it. It's going to be really bad. And they don't need to do it. They have enough problems. Iran has enough problems without doing that. But we’ve been pulling back very substantially over the last year, in Iraq. And so, you know, that's the way it is.

Coronavirus task force press briefing, , quoted in * 2020-04-01

Remarks by President Trump, Vice President Pence, and Members of the Coronavirus Task Force in Press Briefing

James S. Brady

White House

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-vice-president-pence-members-coronavirus-task-force-press-briefing-16/. At that time, Trump had 26 million likes and 28 million followers on Facebook, while President Barack Obama had 55 million likes and 53 million followers.
2020s, 2020, April

“Don't be a cutie pie, okay?”

Trump responding to the question “But everybody who needs one will be able to get a ventilator?” from reporter Jonathan Karl. As quoted by * 2020-03-27

Trump to reporter pressing him about ventilators: 'Don't be a cutie pie'

Tal Axelrod

The Hill

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/489958-trump-to-reporter-pressing-him-about-ventilators-dont-be-a-cutie-pie
2020s, 2020, March

“I know South Korea better than anybody, it's a very tight — do you know how many people are in Seoul? Do you know how big the city of Seoul is? 38 million people. That's bigger than anything we have.”

Trump talking about Seoul, which is a city with 10 million people according to the city government's English language website. As quoted by * 2020-03-30

Trump tried to flex by asking a reporter about the population of Seoul. Then he got it wrong by 28 million.

Jake Lahut

Business Insider

https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-trump-got-the-population-of-seoul-wrong-by-millions-2020-3?r=US&IR=T
2020s, 2020, March

“Look, Easter's a very special day for me. And I see it's sort of in that timeline that I'm thinking about. And I say, "Wouldn't it be great to have all of the churches full?"”

you know the churches aren't allowed, essentially, to have much of a congregation there. And most of 'em, I watched on Sunday, online. And it was terrific, by the way, but online is never going to be like being there. So I think Easter Sunday, and you'll have packed churches all over our country. I think it would be a beautiful time. And it's just about the timeline that I think is right.

Fox News interview, , quoted in * 2020-03-24

Coronavirus: Trump says Easter with ‘packed churches’ would be ‘beautiful time’ to reopen US

John T Bennett

The Independent

UK

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-coronavirus-news-reopen-us-borders-easter-holiday-a9423041.html
2020s, 2020, March

“The buck stops with everybody.”

Q: Does the buck stop with you over this shutdown?

White House press conference, , quoted in * 2019-01-10

Rejecting responsibility, Trump declares, ‘The buck stops with everybody’

Steve Benen

MSNBC

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/rejecting-responsibility-trump-declares-the-buck-stops-everybody, and with video in * 2019-01-10

Trump: 'Buck stops with everybody' for shutdown he was proud to own

Oliver Willis

American Independent

https://americanindependent.com/trump-buck-stops-with-everybody-shutdown-proud/
2010s, 2019, January

“You gotta take care of the floors. You know, the floors of the forest. It's very important. You look at other countries where they do it differently, and it's a whole different story. I was with the president of Finland, and he said, "We have a much different— we're a forest nation."”

He called it a forest nation. And they spend a lot of time on raking and cleaning and doing things, and they don't have any problem.

Paradise, California, , quoted in * 2018-11-20

#RakeNews: People in Finland Mock Trump With Leaf-Raking Photos After He Said the Country 'Rakes the Forest'

Ashley Hoffman

Time Magazine

https://time.com/5458605/trump-finland-raking-reactions/, and with video in * 2018-11-18

Trump Says California Can Learn From Finland on Fires. Is He Right?

Patrick Kingsley

New York Times

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/18/world/europe/finland-california-wildfires-trump-raking.html

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö said he didn't recall anything being said about raking. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/finnish-president-says-he-briefed-trump-on-forest-monitoring/2018/11/18/dd46a57e-eb32-11e8-8b47-bd0975fd6199_story.html
2010s, 2018, November