Donald Trump (2016-2020)

Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States

Donald Trump was a US businessman and the 45th president of the United States. He won the 2016 campaign on a strong populist message, pulling a surprise victory in many Midwestern states, and obtaining a healthy majority in the electoral college. Though he only served one term, his presidency was extremely consequential, and would eventually be the precursor for much of America’s later policies. He oversaw a very healthy, robust economy, until the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which would ultimately cost him the presidency when he ran for a 2nd term. To many, Trump was the Barry Goldwater to Cortez's Reagan, a warning shot of the populist wave yet to come.

## Background

Donald John Trump was born on June 14, 1946, at Jamaica Hospital in the borough of Queens in New York City, the fourth child of Fred Trump, a Bronx-born real estate developer whose parents were German immigrants, and Mary Anne MacLeod Trump, an immigrant from Scotland. Donald Trump had tried and failed a few test runs for president in 2000 under the Reform Party, and again in 2012 for the Republican Party, but dropped out in both, despite polling fairly high in 2012. It wasn’t until 2016 when he really became a serious contender for president, unexpectedly beating out a dozen experienced politicians, and then winning an upset victory against Hillary Clinton to become president of the United States.

## Presidency

Trump's presidency had been mired in controversy from the start, never breaking above a 50% approval rating, and beset by scandals and media attention from the start. As a president, for the most part he passed general conservative social and economic policy. His accomplishments include a notable tax cut for the middle and upper class, the signing of a new USMCA trade deal, and a booming economy.

Despite this, in the long run, his actual policies would not be that consequential, as much of it was repealed by the incoming Biden administration following it. Ultimately, the true legacy of the Trump administration can be classified into three fields: the Supreme Court, Foreign Policy, and the Culture of American politics.

On Supreme Court, Donald Trump was unusually lucky being able to appoint 3 justices in one term, giving him power over the makeup of the Supreme Court, whom he packed with staunch social conservatives. Who would go on to eventually overturn Roe V. Wade, as well as pass many election "fortification" laws under the DeSantis administration.

On Foreign Policy, Donald Trump's presidency would be a turning point in US-China relations, what had become a cold simmer under Obama became boiling discontent under Trump, as the two competing powers began clashing in serious terms for the first time. As well, Donald Trump's "America First" agenda would end up influencing much of the coming isolationism by following administrations, up until the outbreak of World War 3, with even the Biden administration embracing neo-isolationism to an extent.

And finally, on American culture, Donald Trump started a reshuffling of the American party system, with the populists gaining control of the Republican party, and the manufacturing base defecting over to the Republican Party as coalitions began to unravel. His rethoric was ultimately only a manifestation of the simmering culture war between left and right which had been brewing arguably, ever since the Obama administration.

### January 6th Riots

On January 6th, 2021, Donald Trump attacked the Capitol based on allegations of election fraud during the 2020 elections. As of the 22nd century, it remains clear that these allegations were mostly baseless. Of note, future president Victoria Cortez was present at these riots, and was a diehard supporter of the president in her young adulthood, which likely influenced her own politics during this time.

## Later life, and later presidential runs.

Trump ran for president again in 2024, but was blocked by a determined Republican party to prevent him from running. Enraged, Trump ran instead for the Democratic Party, didn't change any of his policies, just told his supporters to change party affiliation and suddenly the Democratic Party was 3x the size of the Republican Party. With Biden choosing not to run for re-election, with the stress of dealing with the 2022 Unravelling taking a toll on his, the primaries were very divided. Trump nearly won the primaries, and split the vote enough to win a plurality. But last minute, the Democrats rallied around Kamala Harris and narrowly beat Donald Trump in the 2024 Democratic Primaries, narrowly avoiding a truly cursed Trump (D) VS DeSantis (R) election.

He contemplated still running as an independent in 2028, but ultimately decided against it, seeing his advanced age, and a voterbase increasingly wary of him. He endorsed Ron DeSantis in the Republican primaries, and DeSantis would later go on to win the 2028 and 2032 elections. Trump would serve as a key inspiration for much of DeSantis’ policies, and in a way, his legacy would live on through him.

As a thanks for his endorsement, DeSantis appointed Trump Secretary of Commerce, before Trump immediately got bored, resigned and decided to go publish books and play golf in his old age. Trump would spend his last years publishing books, giving speeches and endorsements at conservative political conventions, and trading real estate, having achieved all there was in this life. To his dying breath, he would never admit that he had lost the 2020 election, and later expanding his claims that the 2024 Democratic primaries were "totally rigged" as well.