Trump brother was ‘best friend’
DONALD Trump last night paid a glowing tribute to his youngest brother and “best friend”.
Mr Trump, 74, said: “It is with a heavy heart I share that my wonderful brother, Robert, peacefully passed away. He was not just my brother, he was my best friend. He will be greatly missed, but we will meet again.
“His memory will live on in my heart forever. Robert, I love you. Rest in peace.”
Robert Trump passed away on Saturday – a day after the President dashed to be at his bedside. He was 71. President’s son Eric paid tribute, describing him as “an incredible man” who was “strong, kind and loyal to the core”.
Robert had no children, but he helped raise Christopher Hollister Trump-Retchin, the son of his first wife, Blaine Trump.
One rare time he made the headlines was when his wife filed for divorce in 2008 amid revelations he was cheating on her with Ann Marie Pallan, whom he later married.
And he led a lawsuit on behalf of the Trump family seeking to stop publication of a tell-all book by the President’s niece, Mary. Other than the US leader, he is survived by his second wife and his sisters, Maryanne Trump Barry and Elizabeth Trump Grau. His brother Fred Trump Jr died in 1981.As the youngest of five children, Robert was shielded from some of the pressure exerted by his disciplinarian father.
He was never groomed to take over the family real estate company.
He first went to work on Wall Street, instead of joining the family business. But he eventually worked for his brother in the Trump Organisation.
Michael D’Antonio, a Trump biographer, said: “You could consider him the quietest of Trumps.”