Reuters Fact Check
April 17, 2020 / 10:32 PM / 3 months ago
False claim: Donald Trump's mother said he would be a disaster in politics
Social media users have been sharing an image online that claims to show a quote by Mary Anne Trump, President Donald Trump's mother. The quote reads: "Yes, he's an idiot with zero common sense, and no social skills, but he IS my son. I just hope he never goes into politics. He'd be a disaster." (
here )
This claim is unsubstantiated. Reuters could not find any evidence that Mary Anne Trump (whose maiden name was Mary Anne MacLeod) said anything like this. The image does not give any date or source.
Mary Anne MacLeod emigrated to the U.S. from Scotland in 1930 and died in 2000 (
here ). The New Yorker documented her story
here . Politico explored MacLeod as Trump’s less talked-about parent
here .
While Donald Trump’s involvement in politics prior to 2000 was minor, he was an established businessman by then and a public figure (he explored the possibility of running in the 2000 election) (
here ).
Reuters found no evidence attributing this quote to Trump’s mother. It is likely that had MacLeod said this, there would be some record or commentary in media reports at the time or it would have been dug up prior to his 2016 presidential run.
The closest comment Trump’s mother made about her son that Reuters was able to find comes from a 1990 issue of Vanity Fair. Around the late 1980s, Mary Anne MacLeod allegedly said to Trump’s first wife Ivana: "What kind of a son have I created?" (
here ).
VERDICT
False: There is no evidence that Trump’s mother said he was an idiot and would be a disaster in politics
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact checking work
here .
https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-...would-be-a-disaster-in-politics-idUSKBN21Z2AF