# Donald Trump for President? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 10, 2011, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953 "2011-02-10T21:34:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2011, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/21 "2011-02-13T16:22:35Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > (snip) I wouldn’t be too surprised to learn someday when he dies or some circumstance forces him to do a complete accounting of his assets that he’s only worth about $100 million, the amount of money he’s made in his various TV shows. When he had his financial problems ca. 1990, _Spy_ magazine claimed that the divorce from Ivana was what triggered everything, basically starting a ‘run on the bank’. When Trump first made noises about running for president in 1988, his image was much less buffonish than it is today - people forget how much gravitas he tried to project. It was also an era where populist resentment of extreme wealth was at a low. Ten years later, Trump was taken much less seriously by most of the public. I thought it was absurd for him to ask people to consider him as president. But today, with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Venture able to get elected, and porn stars running in special elections, Trump might have as much of a shot as he ever did, which is to say, not much. Even if he were serious about it, which he isn’t. ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/22 "2011-03-22T03:07:29Z")
I dunno. The guy **clearly** knows a thing or two about money, given that he has a net worth of $2.7 billion. If he actually ran, he could fix a few of our financial woes. I remember him saying that NAFTA was a bad idea, and 12 years later, he is correct as to how NAFTA and other foreign trade agreements have allowed companies to ship jobs away and give them to Chinese kids who work for as much as $5.00 a day, while Big Business rakes in more profits. Let me be very clear: I’m not against Big Government(nor do I support it). I just don’t like big CEO’s strolling onto Capitol Hill with their money and their lobbyists, and getting lawmakers to do whatever they want them to do. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/23 "2011-03-22T03:40:01Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I dunno. The guy **clearly** knows a thing or two about money, given that he has a net worth of $2.7 billion. If he actually ran, he could fix a few of our financial woes. I remember him saying that NAFTA was a bad idea, and 12 years later, he is correct as to how NAFTA and other foreign trade agreements have allowed companies to ship jobs away and give them to Chinese kids who work for as much as $5.00 a day, while Big Business rakes in more profits. Let me be very clear: I’m not against Big Government(nor do I support it). I just don’t like big CEO’s strolling onto Capitol Hill with their money and their lobbyists, and getting lawmakers to do whatever they want them to do. Unfortunately, he also knows a thing or two about bankruptcy, from personal experience. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/24 "2011-03-22T04:55:58Z")
Take a look at [Trump’s Wiki page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump) and consider the extraordinary number and range of Trump’s accomplishments and all that he’s involved in now, and then decide for yourself whether a man like that would know enough accomplished and capable people, and posess the qualities needed, to cope with the complexities of life in the White House. Now, having said that, I still don’t think that Trump will actually run for office. As I’ve said, I think he loves what he does too much and that he would find White House life stifling. But there’s little doubt in my mind that he would do a fine job were he to be elected. ---
**Author:** ![Stately\_Greek\_Automaton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aca169/32.png) [@Stately\_Greek\_Automaton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stately_Greek_Automaton)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/25 "2011-03-22T09:27:30Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > Unfortunately, he also knows a thing or two about bankruptcy, from personal experience. Given that, who better to guide America in the coming years? ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/26 "2011-03-22T10:07:19Z")
‘America, Trump said, is becoming “the laughingstock of the world.”’ Yeeeaah, I don’t think that hiring a TV show host is going to help with that. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/27 "2011-03-22T14:44:28Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > And who is going to be his running mate? Find out tonight on…_Celebrity Vice-President_! His toupee, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2011, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/28 "2011-03-22T15:39:44Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I dunno. The guy **clearly** knows a thing or two about money, given that he has a net worth of $2.7 billion. +/- 3 billion ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/29 "2011-04-07T11:59:35Z")
But was that thing on his head born in the US? That’s what I want to know. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/30 "2011-04-07T18:07:43Z")
[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/donald-trump-seriously/2011/04/06/AF0481rC\_blog.html?wpisrc=nl\_lunchln](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/donald-trump-seriously/2011/04/06/AF0481rC_blog.html?wpisrc=nl_lunchln) Trump comes in second in theoretical Repub Primary. It’s getting serious. Most outlets seem to have the choices down to : Romney, Trump, Palin, or Gingrich. Seriously, Republicans, you can do better. For the sake of all of us, get it together! ! ! ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/31 "2011-04-07T18:38:20Z")
From the survey linked in the article above: Mitt Romney 21 Mike Huckabee 17 Donald Trump 17 Newt Gingrich 11 Sarah Palin 10 Tim Pawlenty 6 Michele Bachmann 5 Rick Santorum 3 Haley Barbour 1 Yikes. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/32 "2011-04-07T18:40:32Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Trump comes in second in theoretical Repub Primary. > > It’s getting serious. Not really. And in any case nobody is voting in any primaries for another nine months, and there’s no big “GOP primary.” ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/33 "2011-04-07T18:45:12Z")
Huckabee. :smack: I knew someone was missing from that list. But why do you say “Not really” ? Don’t you think “tied for second” indicates a serious contender? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/34 "2011-04-07T19:17:54Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Don’t you think “tied for second” indicates a serious contender? It reflects name recognition and nothing else. Trump’s a billionaire real estate developer, TV show host, and a self-promoter of enormous proportions. He’s got that in spades - and not much else. I am still skeptical he’s going to run at all. The Iowa caucuses are on February 6th and the intensity of the campaign is still pretty low. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/35 "2011-04-07T19:29:12Z")
I have to say that at least since the Reagan nomination, it’s been my contention that the Republican Party decides it’s candidates using two main criteria: Name recognition and controllability. Sorry, but that’s how I see it. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/36 "2011-04-07T20:35:41Z")
It’s interesting that the candidate who came out on top in this poll is the one of the few GOP candidates who, to my knowledge, has not questioned the President’s birthplace. I’m not sure what Gingrich has said about it. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/37 "2011-04-07T22:12:12Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > I have to say that at least since the Reagan nomination, it’s been my contention that the Republican Party decides it’s candidates using two main criteria: Name recognition and controllability. ‘Controllability’ by who? The parties are less powerful than ever - the GOP especially since they’re trying to keep up with the Tea Party - and it’s the voters who pick the candidates. McCain won almost by process of elimination when Giuliani and Romney and Huckabee couldn’t win over the party faithful. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/38 "2011-04-07T23:04:33Z")
What are his positions on the issues? Would he nuke the gay whales? ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/39 "2011-04-08T01:20:03Z")
Mr. Trump’s personality aside, CEOs tend to be uniquely unsuited to be President. A CEO has ultimate authority over a large organization focused on a single thing, making widgets or doing deals or whatever. And when Mr. CEO becomes President CEO, he snaps his fingers and says “Let’s do this,” only to have Harry Reid or John Boehner or John Roberts or whoever look straight at him and say “Screw you. I don’t work for you.” ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953/40 "2011-04-08T01:43:56Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > Arnold is constitutionally ineligible to be president, and Bill has proven to be a far better businessman than Trump. Actually, given the Republican prediliction for successful businessmen as political candidates, I’d expect them to fall all over Gates. That is very unlikely, he has been on the record saying that he is not a believer or an agnostic, that alone will kill him with a good chunk of the Republican base. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-for-president/570953.md?page=3)