So it turns out that Donald Trump got the joke after all. Or maybe he was the one who put one over on everyone else.Either way, the reality TV star and real estate mogul has concluded that the time has come to end it.
“After considerable deliberation and reflection, I have decided not to pursue the office of the presidency,” Trump announced in a statement on Monday. But, he added: “I maintain the strong conviction that if I were to run, I would be able to win the primary and, ultimately, the general election.”
No one ever knew for sure whether Trump’s flirtation with a 2012 bid was more serious than his earlier ones had been in 1988 and 2000, or whether it was simply his latest attention-getting, ratings-boosting stunt.
Had he run for the Republican nomination, it would have been the most ambitious brand extension effort yet for a man who has slapped his name on, among other things, luxury hotels, country clubs, men’s clothing, bottled water, chocolate and the Miss Universe Pageant.
Trump originally said he would not reveal his decision until this Sunday’s season finale of his NBC show, “Celebrity Apprentice.” But another deadline may have overridden his showman’s impulses: Monday was the day that NBC, which has been struggling in the ratings, was scheduled to present its fall schedule to advertisers in New York.
Network executives reportedly had been pressuring Trump, whose show is one of the network’s most popular, to make his intentions clear. When he appeared onstage for what is known as “upfront” presentation, advertisers cheered.
Trump’s announcement came two days after former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee bowed out of next year’s race, during his own television show on Fox News Channel. Trump made a cameo on Huckabee’s show, which, in retrospect, may have been a clue.
“After considerable deliberation and reflection, I have decided not to pursue the office of the presidency,” Trump announced in a statement on Monday. But, he added: “I maintain the strong conviction that if I were to run, I would be able to win the primary and, ultimately, the general election.”
No one ever knew for sure whether Trump’s flirtation with a 2012 bid was more serious than his earlier ones had been in 1988 and 2000, or whether it was simply his latest attention-getting, ratings-boosting stunt.
Had he run for the Republican nomination, it would have been the most ambitious brand extension effort yet for a man who has slapped his name on, among other things, luxury hotels, country clubs, men’s clothing, bottled water, chocolate and the Miss Universe Pageant.
Trump originally said he would not reveal his decision until this Sunday’s season finale of his NBC show, “Celebrity Apprentice.” But another deadline may have overridden his showman’s impulses: Monday was the day that NBC, which has been struggling in the ratings, was scheduled to present its fall schedule to advertisers in New York.
Network executives reportedly had been pressuring Trump, whose show is one of the network’s most popular, to make his intentions clear. When he appeared onstage for what is known as “upfront” presentation, advertisers cheered.
Trump’s announcement came two days after former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee bowed out of next year’s race, during his own television show on Fox News Channel. Trump made a cameo on Huckabee’s show, which, in retrospect, may have been a clue.
