Donald Trump

The Competitor

Donald Trump was born on June 14, 1946, the fourth child of Fred and Mary Trump. Fred was a successful residential real estate developer in Queens, New York. By the time their fifth child came in 1948, the family was living in a 23-room house with nine bathrooms. They had a chauffer, a live-in maid and two Cadillac limousines.

Fred was a hard worker who spent long hours and weekends supervising projects and getting his hands dirty on construction sites. He started in real estate during the Depression. The construction company he worked for closed. While he was working in a supermarket, Fred used stationery illustrated with a line drawing of a bungalow to write to a local bank. He embroidered his real estate experience to demonstrate that he could manage mortgages. Doing jobs for the bank gave him the experience he needed later to work with foreclosed properties administered by the Federal Housing Administration.

As a boy, Donald showed characteristics that helped him thrive amid competition. He visited properties with his father and saw how Fred’s formal approach to his workers and his focus on details generated respect. Fred’s relentless, tough...