Election day is only four days away and it may be the most important election in modern history. Our current president, Donald Trump, is definitely one of the most controversial presidents many of us will see in our lifetimes. People have criticized Trump on many things including his handling of the pandemic, racial issues and his general attitude toward other politicians and the public. But if you listen to his supporters they always say that he’s done the best things for our economy and that he’s one of the best businessmen out there. I don’t deny that Trump is a businessman, but I think it’s important to recognize how he got to where he is in the business world, and if a businessman is who we want in the office.

Trump’s business empire is composed of a 45-year real estate career, as well as involvement in beauty pageants, commercial products, golf courses, casinos, and hotels. His most noteworthy buildings are the Trump Towers in Manhattan and Chicago. Some may think that this shows that he’s a true representative of the American businessman, but we should consider how he got his leg up into the business world.

Trump’s domain, while impressive, is not one he cultivated on his own. It was due to an inheritance of $200 million from his father, Fred Trump, that he was able to create his empire. Trump was able to piggy-back off of his father’s wealth and business, and this led to many connections and business deals.

Even with a head start, most people could only dream of getting many of Trump’s business activities that ended in bankruptcy and failure. Nearly 13 different Trump business ventures ended with bankruptcy including Trump Steaks, Trump University, and Trump Network. Of course, Trump sticks his name on everything he works on, but I see the number of failed businesses as a means of dragging his name through the mud.

The caveat we should all be taking from this is that to Trump and his family, it doesn’t matter how successful he is business-wise because they have enough money to continue building and failing and building again. This is not a luxury the average American has, and it’s not representative of the qualities we look for in a president. Trump’s business history is self-serving and self-sabotaging, the past four years show that pattern as well and we need to make room for a president that is here to serve the people, not himself.

Destiny Blanchard is a junior management major. She can be reached at 581-2812 or dblanchard@eiu.edu