Interview/ Fred C. Trump III, author and Donald Trump’s nephew
In his book, All in the Family, Fred C. Trump III, reminisces about the night when Donald Trump decided to run for president for the first time. It was the 2011 annual White House correspondents’ dinner and president Barack Obama, who was clearly miffed about Trump’s repeated questions about his place of birth and his eligibility to be president, was in the mood to take him down. As Obama brutally trolled Trump, the room erupted with laughter. But Fred remembers that it made his uncle really angry. “That is what made him run for president. I could feel it in my bones,” writes Fred. “Obama just made a big, badass mistake.” In an exclusive interview with THE WEEK, Fred says Obama woke up the sleeping giant that night. As Trump continues to dominate American politics, taking over the Republican Party and running for a third time to become president, Fred says he plans to vote for Kamala Harris and gives his reasons. Edited excerpts from the interview:
In your book, you have written about one of the most shocking exchanges you had with your uncle, Donald Trump, which involves your son, William. Trump told you that you should just let William, who suffers from a major disability, die. But he also supported you financially for taking care of William.
Yeah, it's a more complicated story than that. When William was born in 1999, a day after we buried my grandfather, he started having intense seizures, hundreds of seizures a day. He was at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, literally walking distance from either of my aunts or uncles at the time, Trump included. No one came to visit William. William subsequently went to two other hospitals for a total of seven weeks before he finally came home on very intense seizure medications. About a week after that, I received a letter from Trump’s attorney saying that my sister Mary and I were taken out of my grandfather's will. My grandfather's original will had cut it into five portions for his five children. My father unfortunately passed away in 1981. Trump was in very bad financial situation back then. His companies were bankrupt. It was so embarrassing to him that he was put on an allowance by the banks. So, he hatched this scheme to take Mary and me out of my grandfather's will. When this all was happening, my grandfather had dementia. So, Trump took advantage of his father at that time. We settled the case a year or so after. I don't want to make this a William story, although he has given me the opportunity to advocate on behalf of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. William's wheelchair bound. He's 25 years old now. He needs assistance with everything he does, but he is the most courageous and inspirational person I know.
[Trump has] no empathy. He doesn't want to be seen around people like my son, who are disabled, or members of the military who have been injured or killed. He feels he is above all else. And those who don't measure up to his standards are deemed losers, somebody he just does not care about or want anything to do with.... That is why I am voting for and will campaign for Kamala Harris. I have already been on several Zoom calls with a group, Disabled Americans for Harris. If you look at Project 2025 (a controversial, 900-page policy wish-list for the next Republican president), the disabled community and the minority communities will be pushed aside. [In Kamala, you will have] the first black woman president, the first president of Indian heritage, and that's great. And it drives him absolutely nuts that is who he is running against. She is terrific. I understand the enthusiasm for Kamala, and that is why I am supporting her.
This must be one of the craziest elections in the history of the United States. A sitting president got replaced on the ticket by his vice president, who did not win even a single primary. There were two assassination attempts against Trump, and his debate performances have swung between two extremes. And the race looks really tight.
Oh, it is very tight. And the debate [with Harris] was a complete embarrassment for Trump. But debates don't choose presidents. It was Kamala's opportunity to get to know millions of people because she literally has not had that great opportunity being a vice president. We all know the jokes about the vice president in America. She is coming on strong. But this is a very, very close race and it could go down either way.
The Trump campaign appears chaotic, while Harris is running an efficient campaign. She also has a significant fundraising advantage. So, why is the race still a tight one?
Trump has a base that is going nowhere. I don't know why some people really follow him. But he has this incredible ability to make people forget. People forget how the fourth year of Trump's term was, when hundreds of thousands of people were dying because of his negligence on Covid. I watched an interview the other day. Trump was saying inflation and gas prices were the lowest [under him]. It [remained low] because people couldn't go anywhere. People just love to feel good about the things he says. It makes them feel great about themselves. Unfortunately, that's at the expense of other people who he consistently demeans. He calls Kamala stupid. That's the way he operates. People just buy into it. The Harris campaign needs to pick off the margins, the independent voters.
Will Trump concede if he loses narrowly in November? We all remember the Capitol riots of January 6, 2021.
He will not give in. Already, local election boards in certain states are saying that if Trump loses, they are not going to certify the election. And it will be another round of the judicial process. It went the right way in 2020. It's going to be bad [this time]. I hope no violence occurs because there's no place—I say this after the attempted assassination attempts against Trump—for violence in our country. It will be easier in the future if there's no MAGA (Make America Great Again) wing of the Republican Party.
How do you look at the future of the Republican Party?
The Republican Party has to wash itself off this very venal wing (MAGA) that has formed over the past eight years. I hate MAGA because it insinuates that this country isn't great. This is a great country. We have our faults. There is no doubt about it. But that's why a potential future president Kamala Harris will help work on those, as did Joe Biden, who deserves kudos for the work he did.
How would you assess Biden’s record as president?
Biden was coming in through the turmoil of those months after the 2020 election. [The only negative thing I would say about him is that] he gave a pass to the Republican Party and to Trump. He didn't explain why the economy was in such a bad shape. And he's taken the hit for it. Inflation had been way too high. But the reason for that was that the world had shut down. The Biden administration did not explain that well enough. Biden had to heal this country. And he did that. I believe in policy over politics all the time, but there is a political side to everything. Biden underestimated the need to take on the MAGA crew.
What about immigration? The entire immigration policy collapsed during the Biden administration.
A lot of it is messaging. Think of how many jobs Biden has created. But a lot of people feel uneasy about the economy as inflation affects pretty much everybody. But 10 million people had lost their jobs during Covid. They have been rehired, and the economy is technically in good shape. It's just that people are not feeling it. I hope Kamala will be able to give that sense of positivity to what is happening and what will continue to happen under her administration.
Why do you think Trump is fascinated by strongmen like Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping and Kim Jong-un? During the debate, he cited praise from Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, who is also known for his dictatorial style.
Trump has always wanted to be the tough guy. I don't know if he's ever been in a fight in his life. He's been coddled his entire life. We both grew up in Queens, New York, which is kind of a rough place. Believe me, I got into my fair share of scrapes back in the day. But I don't think Trump ever did. His father was a very tough guy. And Trump has always had that in him. It is impossible for Trump to admit mistakes, or that he is weak in any way. So he looks towards people like Putin and Kim Jong-un and Orban. That's what he is, and he's never going to change.
Your book speaks about the Trump family history of dementia. And in one of your interviews, you mentioned that Trump, too, has shown symptoms.
I am not a physician, but I have had two grandparents who had dementia. Trump's first cousin John [Walters] had dementia. I know what it looks like. Trump forgets or misnames people all the time. I have definitely seen a decline in Trump. He just looks tired. But I get it. I am one of the few people alive who knows him from the time he was a young guy. I know how hard he works.... It is starting to affect the way he talks and the way he acts.
You mentioned in your book that there was an incident when Trump used a racial slur after someone damaged the roof of his favourite car. Is he really a racist?
I was there. I remember it exactly. He used the N-word twice, but what's really troubling to me is that he continues to do it. He didn't actually know who slashed the roof of his car. He just assumed it was black people. If you go forward in the book, I tell a story very close to the time of that incident when three young black kids about my age stole my bike. The police called and they found one of the kids that took it. My mom asked Trump to go to the police station with me. He was adamant about having this kid thrown in jail. I can't have a kid my age, 10 years old, thrown in jail for doing something stupid. Unfortunately, Trump wasn't. But then, and I don't know how much you all know about the Central Park Five, but it was a group of young black men who were arrested for allegedly raping a jogger in Central Park. Trump took out a full page ad, I believe it was in the New York Times, basically saying that these guys should die. Sounds familiar? Now, is he a racist? I can't say if he's a racist, but the people he associates with, the neo-Nazis, like this guy Mark Robinson who is running for governor in North Carolina, say terribly racist things. And Trump supports him. In fact, Trump almost created this guy. He will use that for his endgame, which is victory.
Coming back to this election, how do you compare the two vice presidential candidates, J.D. Vance and Tim Walz?
I think Governor Walz is a genuine kind of guy, a Midwestern guy. My mom came from Kalamazoo, Michigan, so I know that area of the world pretty well. J.D. Vance is basically a sycophant. He'll say whatever it takes to please Trump. And look, I know Walz, too, wants to win. But to compare the two, I think it's a real stretch. I could hang out with Governor Walz. With Vance, I'm not so sure. And what Vance is doing right now in Springfield, Ohio, with the Haitian community, is just disgusting. Many of my son William's aides are Haitian Americans. And they are decent, hardworking people who have helped make my son, the young man that he is today. So if Trump or Vance goes to Springfield, Ohio, I'm going to go, too. And I'm going to speak on behalf of that wonderful community who are in this country legally.
If I ask you to give me, say, three positive things about Trump, what would those be?
He taught me how to play golf. He can be charming, there's no doubt about it. I think he genuinely loves his family. So I'll give him that.
I remember reading in your book that you got front row seats for Trump’s inauguration in 2017. You were treated very well. So that kind of a bond still exists between you and Donald Trump.
We went through a very contentious lawsuit in 2000, and he came back to me and we buried the hatchet. I don't know if he'll be able to do the same again. I have my advocacy work. If he becomes president again, it would be hypocritical of me not to reach out to him.
ALL IN THE FAMILY: THE TRUMPS AND HOW WE GOT THIS WAY
By Fred C. Trump III
Published by Simon & Schuster UK
Pages 352; price Rs899