Jan 18, 2016:
Speaking at a campaign event at Liberty University, Donald Trump said:
If you look at what's going on throughout the world...Christianity is under siege.
We're going to protect Christianity.
Liberty University is an evangelical liberal arts institution in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Donald Trump takes Liberty, courts Christian crowd | CNN
Trump: Christianity 'under siege' | The Hill
Jan 4, 2016:
Donald Trump began running his first campaign TV ad.
Donald Trump's provocative first TV ad raises the temperature of GOP race | The Washington Post
Donald Trump's First, Ugly TV Ad | The New Yorker
Trump criticized for campaign ad showing 'southern border' using footage of Morocco | Fox News
Dec 7, 2015:
In a press release on his official website entitled "Donald J. Trump Statement on Preventing Muslim Immigration" Donald Trump calls for a "...total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on."
Here's the full text of the release:
(New York, NY) December 7th, 2015, -- Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on. According to Pew Research, among others, there is great hatred towards Americans by large segments of the Muslim population. Most recently, a poll from the Center for Security Policy released data showing "25% of those polled agreed that violence against Americans here in the United States is justified as a part of the global jihad" and 51% of those polled, "agreed that Muslims in America should have the choice of being governed according to Shariah." Shariah authorizes such atrocities as murder against non-believers who won't convert, beheadings and more unthinkable acts that pose great harm to Americans, especially women.
Mr. Trump stated, "Without looking at the various polling data, it is obvious to anybody the hatred is beyond comprehension. Where this hatred comes from and why we will have to determine. Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses, our country cannot be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in Jihad, and have no sense of reason or respect for human life. If I win the election for President, we are going to Make America Great Again." - Donald J. Trump
Source:
Trump, Donald. (December 7, 2015). "Donald J. Trump Statement on Preventing Muslim Immigration". donaldjtrump.com. Retrieved 2015-12-07.
Donald Trump's call to ban Muslim immigrants is based on a very shoddy poll
Trump: Banning Muslims from US similar to World War Two policy | Reuters
Nov 29, 2015:
On NBC's Meet The Press with host Chuck Todd, Trump defended his claim that he and a lot of other people saw people cheering when the twin towers collapsed on September 11, 2001.
Trump on 9/11 claims: 'I'm not going to take it back' | The Hill
Trump defends 9/11 claims: I have world's best memory | The Hill
Nov 24, 2015:
At a campaign speech in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Donald Trump defended his claim (at a campaign speech in Birminghan, Alabama on November 21) that he had witnessed "thousands and thousands" of Muslims cheering in New Jersey on September 11, 2001, as the World Trade Center towers collapsed.
Trump goes on to reference an article in The Washington Post entitled "Northern New Jersey Draws Probers' Eyes" dated September 18, 2001 which said the following:
In Jersey City, within hours of two jetliners' plowing into the World Trade Center, law enforcement authorities detained and questioned a number of people who were allegedly seen celebrating the attacks and holding tailgate-style parties on rooftops while they watched the devastation on the other side of the river.
Then, Trump made mocking gestures about The Washington Post reporter who wrote the article, Serge Kovaleski. In video from the speech, Trump is seen moving his arms and hands around and changing his tone of voice as if he is Kovaleski speaking, recounting Kovaleski saying he doesn't remember what he said in the article. Trumps exact words were:
Now the poor guy, you gotta see this guy, "Uhhh, I don't know what I said. Uhhh, I don't remember". He's like, "I don't remember", I don't, maybe that's what I said".
Kovaleski is disabled and has a condition known as arthrogryposis, which visibly limits flexibility in his arms.
Watch the 42-second video here.
Source:
A. DelReal, Jose. (December 1, 2015). "Trump denies mocking journalist who has disability, demands an apology". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
Carroll, Lauren. (November 22, 2015). "Fact-checking Trump's claim that thousands in New Jersey cheered when World Trade Center tumbled". Politifact. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
Commentary:
This is just another example of Trump taking information and grossly exaggerating it to help support his point of view. For a presidential candidate to mock anyone with a disability is beyond being "politically incorrect" and it should not be tolerated.
Nov 21, 2015:
At a campaign speech in Birmingham, Alabama, Donald Trump said he would order surveillance of "certain mosques".
Trump responded to his statement earlier this week about the creation of a registry of Muslims in the United States as an effort by the news media to entrap him.
Trump also said he would create a database of refugees entering the U.S. from Syria.
Nov 20, 2015:
When asked by an NBC news reporter about the creation of a national database to register all Muslims living in the U.S, Donald Trump responded "I would certainly implement that. Absolutely.". In the past week, Trump also said he would consider shutting down mosques.
Later, when asked about the database by a CNN reporter, Trump said he didn't know where the reporter had heard that. When asked about not ruling out the possibility of a database, Trump said he never responded to the original question.
Trump would 'certainly implement' national database for U.S. Muslims | CNN
Trump's rivals denounce his call for a Muslim database | Politico
Oct 2, 2015:
Donald Trump said that mental illness is what caused yesterday's Roseburg, Oregon shooting, and that gun laws had nothing to do with it.
Trump: Gun laws have ‘nothing to do' with Oregon shooting | The Hill
Sep 30, 2015:
Donald Trump said that if he wins the presidential race, he will deport all Syrian refugees that come into the United States.
Trump: If I win, I'll send Syrian refugees back | The Hill
Sep 28, 2015:
In New York, Donald Trump announced his plan for tax reform entitled "Tax Reform That Will Make America Great Again".
Trump Plan Is Tax Cut for the Rich, Even Hedge Fund Managers | The New York Times
Donald Trump unveils plan to slash taxes for the poor -- and the wealthy | CNN
Sep 23, 2015:
Via his Twitter account, Donald Trump announced he is boycotting Fox News "for the foreseeable future" because he said he is being treated "very unfairly" by Fox News.
Donald Trump is boycotting Fox News | The Washington Post
Aug 25, 2015:
At a new conference in Dubuque, Iowa Donald Trump had Univision news Jorge Ramos removed from the room by security when Ramos stood and began asking questions without being called on by Trump. Ramos later returned to the room where he had a long, five-minute exchange with Trump about immigration reform.
Aug 19, 2015:
Donald Trump and Jeb Bush were at separate town-hall events in the state of New Hampshire.
Trump slammed Bush for his support of Common Core education, for his "act of love" remark about illegal immigrants, and for his "skin in the game" remark about the U.S. involvement in Iraq. He also referred to Bush as being "low-energy".
Bush described Trump as being more of a Democrat for his support of a single-payer healthcare system and higher taxes on the wealthy.
Trump and Bush go to war in New Hampshire | The Hill
The Mexican government said that Trump's immigration plan (deport undocumented immigrants and build a wall between Mexico and the United States and have Mexico pay for it) is absurd, racist, and ignorant.
Mexico condemns Donald Trump's 'racist' and 'absurd' immigration plan | The Guardian
Aug 11, 2015:
Donald Trump spoke at a rally in Birch Run, Michigan.
Here are the highlights from his speech:
- He attacked Ford Motor Company for building two new factories in Mexico at a cost of $2.5 billion
- He reiterated his belief that a wall needs to be built on the U.S. Mexico border, saying again that he can convince Mexico to pay for it
- He denounced China (for devaluing it's currency) and the Iran nuclear deal
- He called Bernie Sanders "weak" for the incident with Black Lives Matter at a recent Sanders rally
One rally attendee summed up Trump's appeal by saying:
I've been waiting for somebody with cojones for a long time...We need somebody with guts. I want to see him do something for jobs and get those deadbeats in Congress off their butts.
In Michigan, Donald Trump Takes Aim at Ford Motor Co. | Bloomberg News
Aug 6, 2015:
Donald Trump provided lots of drama in the first formal GOP Presidential debate held in Cleveland, Ohio and hosted by Fox News.
I think the big problem this country has -- is being politically correct. And I don't frankly have time for total political correctness. And to be honest with you, this country doesn't have time either.
No one eclipses Donald Trump at GOP debate | CNN
Trump's dramatic moments at the GOP debate | CNN
One of the most controversial statements made by Trump was the day after the debate when he was interviewed by CNN's Don Lemon. Regarding Fox News host Megyn Kelly Trump said "You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her wherever.".
Donald Trump's 'blood' comment about Megyn Kelly draws outrage | CNN
Jul 24, 2015:
The Des Moines Register reported that the Trump campaign said the newspapers reporters would be denied access to a The Make America Great Again Rally and Family Picnic campaign event to be held tomorrow in Oskaloosa, Iowa because the newspaper ran an "anti-Trump" editorial on July 21, 2015 entitled "Editorial: Trump should pull the plug on his bloviating side show".
Here's a transcript of the editorial:
It's time for Donald Trump to drop out of the race for president of the United States.
People who run for public office typically perform a great public service, regardless of whether they win on Election Day. That's particularly true of presidential candidates, most of whom must devote two years of their lives to hard-fought campaigns that involve staggering personal and financial sacrifices, all in an effort to serve their country.
And then there's Trump.
In the five weeks since he announced his campaign to seek the GOP nomination for president, Trump has been more focused on promoting himself, and his brand, than in addressing the problems facing the nation. If he were merely a self-absorbed, B-list celebrity, his unchecked ego could be tolerated as a source of mild amusement. But he now wants to become president, which means that he aspires to be the leader of the free world and the keeper of our nuclear launch codes.
That is problematic, because Trump, by every indication, seems wholly unqualified to sit in the White House. If he had not already disqualified himself through his attempts to demonize immigrants as rapists and drug dealers, he certainly did so by questioning the war record of John McCain, the Republican senator from Arizona.
Trump campaign bars Iowa paper from Iowa event after critical editorial | CNN
Jul 18, 2015:
At the Family Leadership Summit 2015 in Ames, Iowa, Donald Trump was speaking with host Frank Luntz about John McCain when Frank referred to John McCain as a "war hero", to which Trump responded "He's not a war hero...he's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured".
Watch the entire Frank Luntz interview with Donald Trump here. Trump's comments about McCain start around the 5-minute mark of the interview.
Read the responses from some of the GOP presidential contenders here.
Trump attacks McCain: 'I like people who weren't captured' | Politico
Donald Trump attack on John McCain war record is 'new low in US politics' | The Guardian
The Trump Campaign's Turning Point | The New York Times
Jul 11, 2015:
Donald Trump spoke at a rally in Phoenix, Arizona.
Trump basks in adulation at Arizona immigration rally | The Hill
Watch a video of the entire rally here.
Jul 2, 2015:
In an interview with CNN Tonight host Don Lemon, Donald Trump defended the "They're rapists" statement he made during his presidential announcement speech. In the interview, Trump said the statistics support his statement and he referred to an article on the Fusion website entitled "Is rape the price to pay for migrant women chasing the American Dream?" to back up his claim.
The Fusion article discusses women in Guatemala (Guatemala is on the southern border of Mexico) who are hoping to reach America by heading north through Mexico, and how along the way they are often raped. Here's a quote from a video on the Fusion article web page, referring to women coming into Mexico from Guatemala, not women coming from Mexico into the United States:
Shelter directors and human rights protectors estimate that 80% of migrant women crossing Mexico are raped along the way, but the actual figures are impossible to know.
In the CNN interview, Lemon points out to Trump that the statistics he is using to support his claim refer to rapes being committed in Mexico, not in the United States, to which Trump responds:
Somebody's doing the raping...Well, who's doing the raping?
Listen to Don Lemon's interview with Donald Trump here.
Jul 1, 2015:
Macy's department store announced it will remove Donald Trump brand merchandise from its stores.
First on CNN: Macy's dumps Donald Trump | CNN
Univision, NBC & Macy's dump Trump -- he doesn't budge | CNN
Jun 30, 2015:
Donald Trump filed a $500 million lawsuit against Univision for it's decision to not air the Miss USA pageant.
Yesterday, NBC announced it would not be airing the Miss USA pageant. NBC also announced that Trump will no longer be hosting the TV program "The Celebrity Apprentice".
Donald Trump Sues Univision for Dropping Pageant Broadcast | The New York Times
Jun 25, 2015:
The Univision network made an announcment stating:
We will not be airing the Miss USA pageant on July 12th or working on any other projects tied to the Trump Organization.
Miss USA pageant co-hosts Roselyn Sanchez and Cristián de la Fuente both cancelled their participation in the pageant because of Trump's remarks about Mexican immigrants.
In response, Trump posted the following on Twitter:
Mexican gov doesn't want me talking about terrible border situation & horrible trade deals. Forcing Univision to get me to stop- no way!
Univision wants to back out of signed @MissUniverse contract because I exposed the terrible trade deals that the U.S. makes with Mexico.
I love Mexico but not the unfair trade deals that the US so stupidly makes with them. Really bad for US jobs, only good for Mexico.
Source:
Puente, Maria. (June 25, 2015). "Univision dumps Miss Universe, blames Trump". USA Today. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
Jun 17, 2015:
Donald Trump announced his bid for the 2016 U.S. presidency.
Donald Trump jumps in: The Donald's latest White House run is officially on | CNN
Here are a few quotes from his announcement speech:
The U.S. has become a dumping ground for everybody else's problems.
When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best...They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.
We have a disaster called the big lie: Obamacare. Obamacare...You have to be hit by a tractor, literally, a tractor, to use it, because the deductibles are so high, it's virtually useless. It's virtually useless. It is a disaster.
We have to repeal Obamacare, and it can be -- and -- and it can be replaced with something much better for everybody.
You know, when President Obama was elected, I said, "Well, the one thing, I think he'll do well. I think he'll be a great cheerleader for the country. I think he'd be a great spirit."...He's not a leader...He's actually a negative force. He's been a negative force. He wasn't a cheerleader; he was the opposite. We need somebody that can take the brand of the United States and make it great again.
I will be the greatest jobs President that God ever created.
I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I'll build them very inexpensively, I will build a great, great wall on our southern border. And I will have Mexico pay for that wall.
We've got Social Security that's going to be destroyed if somebody like me doesn't bring money into the country. All these other people want to cut the hell out of it. I'm not going to cut it at all; I'm going to bring money in, and we're going to save it.
I will stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons. And we won't be using a man like Secretary Kerry that has absolutely no concept of negotiation, who's making a horrible and laughable deal...
I will immediately terminate President Obama's illegal executive order on immigration, immediately.
Sadly the American dream is dead. But if I get elected president I will bring it back, bigger, and better, and stronger than ever before.
Source:
Washington Post Staff. (June 16, 2015). "Full text: Donald Trump announces a presidential bid". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2015-07-11.
Read a transcript of his announcement speech here.
Watch a video of his announcement speech here.
For more information about Donald Trump and his 2016 campaign, visit the Trump: Make America Great Again! website.
More:
- Trump's fade into incoherence | The Washington Post
- Is Jesse Ventura's unlikely Minnesota win a road map for Donald Trump? | The Washington Post
- Roselyn Sanchez exits as Miss USA co-host because of Donald Trump comments | CBS News
- Donald Trump announces US presidential run with eccentric speech | The Guardian