Donald Trump: Obama Wasn't Qualified For Ivy League

NEW YORK — Real estate mogul Donald Trump suggested in an interview Monday that President Barack Obama had been a poor student who did not deserve to be admitted to the Ivy League universities he attended. Trump, who is mulling a bid for the Republican presidential nomination, offered no proof for his claim but said he would continue to press the matter as he has the legitimacy of the president's birth certificate.

"I heard he was a terrible student, terrible. How does a bad student go to Columbia and then to Harvard?" Trump said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I'm thinking about it, I'm certainly looking into it. Let him show his records."

Obama graduated from Columbia University in New York in 1983 with a degree in political science after transferring from Occidental College in California. He went on to Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude 1991 and was the first black president of the Harvard Law Review.

Obama's 2008 campaign did not release his college transcripts, and in his best-selling memoir, "Dreams From My Father," Obama indicated he hadn't always been an academic star. Trump told the AP that Obama's refusal to release his college grades were part of a pattern of concealing information about himself.

"I have friends who have smart sons with great marks, great boards, great everything and they can't get into Harvard," Trump said. "We don't know a thing about this guy. There are a lot of questions that are unanswered about our president."

Katie Hogan, a spokeswoman for Obama's re-election campaign, declined to comment.

Trump, a wealthy businessman and reality TV host, has risen to the top of many polls in part by his outspoken call for Obama to release his long form birth certificate. The state of Hawaii has released a certificate of live birth indicating Obama was born there on August 4, 1961, but that has not quelled critics who believe Obama was born outside the United States and is therefore not qualified to be president.

The so-called "birther" controversy has dominated the early stage of the 2012 GOP nominating contest, with Trump leading the charge.

"I have more people that are excited about the fact that I reinvigorated this whole issue," Trump said, adding "the last guy (Obama) wants to run against is Donald Trump."

Trump is scheduled to travel to the early primary states of New Hampshire and Nevada this week and said he will make a final decision about a presidential bid by June.

Also in the AP interview, Trump:

_ Said Republicans had made a mistake by embracing a budget proposal crafted by Wisconsin GOP Rep. Paul Ryan that included deep cuts in Medicare. "The seniors are afraid. The plan Paul Ryan put forth has made the Democrats so happy," Trump said.

_ Declined to disclose his net worth, saying he'll do so if he decides to run. "You'll see what it is, possibly, very likely, in the next 4 weeks. I don't want to say because I don't want to ruin the press conference," he said.

_ Expressed surprise that the 2008 GOP nominee, John McCain, had suggested Trump's effort was a publicity stunt. "I congratulate him for getting the attention he's getting," McCain told NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday.

Trump said he had been a big supporter of McCain. "I would find it hard to believe he would say anything bad because I raised a fantastic amount of money for him," Trump said.

Comments

[freddypudwacker]

04:32 PM on 05/17/2011

Bush was a C student at Yale...

[EEBBBBBBBBBBB]

11:36 PM on 05/04/2011

Hey Trump, he was smart enough to become president of the United States. That's all you need to know.

[elaineolivia]

03:35 PM on 05/02/2011

I didn't even read the clip of Trump. He looks mean, his words are mean and by the way mr.comb
over. YOU are done. After hearing Bin Laden is dead who cares about a report card.

[Angelo Locicero]

11:19 PM on 05/01/2011

Donald Trump says: "word is he (Obama) wasn't a very good student." I say "word is he (Trump) is a very big racist"

[cyndeewi]

09:29 AM on 04/30/2011

I guess old Trump does not want to hear about Hill Harper who graduated Valedictorian from Brown and Harvard university. Hill's grads were better than Obama's. Hill was a straight A student throughout all his college years. There are many many blacks that, although not famous but they run circles around Thumper and his kind.

[Sallie Fajardo]

06:53 PM on 04/29/2011

I'm glad his saying what everyone knows but won't say.

[n8tedog2002]

11:31 AM on 05/02/2011

You're an idiot.

[Jeremy Ailes]

01:20 PM on 05/02/2011

what? Do you realize how difficult it is to graduate magna cum laud from any institution, much less from Harvard Law School? Saw he wasn't always a stellar student, probably why he went to Occidental and then transferred to Columbia, so he could get his grades up and refocus his academic career.

I messed around in high school and was an average student, after having a hard time getting into the school of my choice I decided that I needed to be more serious. I've never had less than a 3.6 GPA since that moment...maybe very similar with our current President.

[Anthony Perone]

12:46 AM on 04/29/2011

Yeah...everybody Black at Harvard Law gets 'Magna-Cum'. The whites have to settle for Suma-Cum. (Trump is currently listed as ..7th-grader...he'll need work!)

[dukeuch]

05:20 PM on 04/28/2011

He's wondering if Obama, who ended up manga cum laude at Harvard, had the academic chops, but did not similarly ponder W's acceptance to the Ivy League? Hmmmm. I guess that being from a family of privilige, he does not question the how's and why's of acceptance due to family connections.

[MXL]

08:46 AM on 04/30/2011

Exactly what I was thinking. I'm far from an Obama fan (or a fan of any other politician, for that matter) but this is just ridiculous. Dubya went to Yale and Harvard Business School and he can hardly string a coherent sentence together -- but nobody raised an eyebrow. Like you said, I guess acceptance based solely on pedigree doesn't need to be questioned.

[cabo]

04:01 PM on 04/28/2011

Shame on you Donald (Shaggy Dog)! Why can't you get along with "the black" President.
Inferiority complex - Say it loud, President Obama is black and proud!

[BannedNBoston]

03:26 PM on 04/28/2011

Trump has Jewish Campaign Manager.

http://www.realzionistnews.com/?p=630

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck02k6d-_nI

[paganmist]

05:38 PM on 04/28/2011

It's possible to be biased against one minority but not against another.

[BannedNBoston]

05:59 PM on 04/28/2011

Hi Paganmist,
Check out the the phallic symbols in this video!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck02k6d-_nI

[eyalgot]

04:14 PM on 05/02/2011

And his daughter is married to a Jewish guy. So what's your point? He can still have racist feelings towards black people. There are jews, blacks and hispanics that are racist too. Being a minority does not mean you can't be racist.

[urbanlife]

12:00 PM on 04/28/2011

The headline is a bit misleading, but this is what Trump said:

"I heard he was a terrible student, terrible. How does a bad student go to Columbia and then to Harvard?"

This is not a statement of fact, just something he heard. A bad student DOES NOT go to Columbia Univ. and then on to Harvard Law to become President of the law review and graduate magna cum laude.

If the GOP could find a candidate with qualifications like this, they'd have an ideal candidate for 2012..........

[jack27]

12:55 PM on 04/28/2011

But dont you see, those dam librul Ivy Leage profs felt sory for him cause he's black, so they gave him all A's! So did U Chicago Law Skool when they hired him to teach constutional law! Its all that danged Furmative Action!

Sarcasm Alert (I hope it's not needed).

[wendoxia]

11:36 AM on 04/28/2011

"I heard.. I heard".. from his investigators? ( i still picturing omarosa and gary busey staggering around hawaii)

Its horrible that this man continues to spout this nonsense .... every single interviewer should say.. where? where did you hear it? and ask him about the building donated to harvard by the parents of his son in law, when his son in law was a high school senior filling out his college applications... ( surprise! he went to harvard!). send an investigator to check THAT out, donald.

[Tater Gumfries]

06:09 PM on 05/21/2011

American newscasters and reporters are scared to confront people cause news organizations rely on interviewin famous people for their ratins. They piss em off, they won't get more interviews. British reporters will keep after someone till they answer the questions. American reporters are useless.

[emjgreen]

10:56 AM on 04/28/2011

It seems that Trump is just trying to instill skepticism and fear in the Republican voting population. I assumed he was more responsible than this! Next thing you know he'll be on the board of the freaking NRA. Makes American politicians look no better than the fear-mongering tyrants who rule other countries of the world

[lafouhuff]

09:22 AM on 04/28/2011

Would W have gotten into Yale if he was Joe-Schmoe? Is Affirmative Action ok if it is for the Old Money crowd?

[paid troll]

07:49 AM on 04/28/2011

contact nbc and let them know how disgraceful it is that they continue to employ this teal00n.