Donald Trump’s Greatest Self-Contradictions
The many, many, MANY sides of the likely Republican nominee, in his own words.
Donald Trump likes to say that he “tells it like it is,” and his blunt style has won him the Republican nomination, buoyed by voters who like feeling they know just where a candidate stands on the issues. So where does he stand? Over the past four decades Trump has talked about every imaginable subject: gun rights to germs, the nature of competition to pre-nuptial agreements, love and sex, self-promotion and politics. And on every one of those topics, he has taken positions that directly contradict exactly what he has previously said.
.. When someone crosses you, my advice is ‘Get even!’ That is not typical advice, but it is real-life advice. If you do not get even, you are just a schmuck! When people wrong you, go after those people, because it is a good feeling and because other people will see you doing it. I love getting even. I get screwed all the time. I go after people, and you know what? People do not play around with me as much as they do with others. They know that if they do, they are in for a big fight. Always get even. Go after people that go after you. Don’t let people push you around. Always fight back and always get even. It’s a jungle out there, filled with bullies of all kinds who will try to push you around. If you’re afraid to fight back people will think of you as a loser, a ‘schmuck!’ They will know they can get away with insulting you, disrespecting you, and taking advantage of you. Don’t let it happen! Always fight back and get even.” (Trump: Think Big, 2007)
“If you can avoid an altercation, do so.” (Trump: Think Like a Billionaire, 2004)
“If someone attacks you, do not hesitate. Go for the jugular.” (Trump: Think Big, 2007)
.. “I don’t want to be provocative, and in many cases I try not to be provocative.” (Time to Get Tough: Making America #1 Again, 2011)
“I do love provoking people. There is truth to that.” (BuzzFeed, February 13, 2014)
.. “I don’t want to be provocative, and in many cases I try not to be provocative.” (Time to Get Tough: Making America #1 Again, 2011)
“I do love provoking people. There is truth to that.” (BuzzFeed, February 13, 2014)
.. “I like kids. I mean, I won’t do anything to take care of ‘em. I’ll supply funds, and she’ll take care of the kids.” (The Howard Stern Show, April 2005)
.. “Geraldo Rivera is a friend of mine, but he did something which I thought was absolutely terrible and he admits it was a mistake. He wrote a book naming many of the famous women that he slept with. I would never do that—I have too much respect for women in general, but if I did, the world would take serious notice. Beautiful, famous, successful, married—I’ve had them all, secretly, the world’s biggest names, but unlike Geraldo I don’t talk about it.” (Trump: Think Big, 2007)
“I don’t have to brag. I don’t have to. Believe it or not.” (New York, June 16, 2015)
.. “You can’t con people, at least not for long. You can create excitement, you can do wonderful promotion and get all kinds of press, and you can throw in a little hyperbole. But if you don’t deliver the goods, people will eventually catch on. I think of Jimmy Carter. After he lost the election to Ronald Reagan, Carter came to see me in my office. He told me he was seeking contributions to the Jimmy Carter Library. I asked how much he had in mind. And he said, ‘Donald, I would be very appreciative if you contributed five million dollars.’ I was dumbfounded. I didn’t even answer him. But that experience also taught me something. Until then, I’d never understood how Jimmy Carter became president. The answer is that as poorly qualified as he was for the job, Jimmy Carter had the nerve, the guts, the balls, to ask for something extraordinary. That ability above all helped him get elected president.” (Trump: The Art of the Deal, 1987)
.. “The worst hell you will ever face is the hell you create with your own mind.” (Trump: Think Big, 2007)