The Trump Files: Donald’s Cologne Smelled of Jamba Juice and Strip Clubs

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This post was originally published as part of “The Trump Files“—a collection of telling episodes, strange but true stories, and curious scenes from the life of our current president—on August 1, 2016.

First there was Trump: The Game. Almost two decades later, the billionaire slapped his name on a different sort of product, and Donald Trump The Fragrance was born. For fans who wanted to smell of eau de Trump, the magnate released his first cologne in 2004. For the mere price of $60, Trump’s fragrance would “make you feel like a success,” the billionaire said at an event covered by the Chicago Sun-Times. According to another report, in the Chicago Tribune, Trump claimed it could even bring success in love. “If a man puts it on, he can have any woman he wants,” Trump said at a launch event at the now-defunct Chicago department store Marshall Field’s. “Or man he wants.”

The scent, created in partnership with Estee Lauder, smelled “floral and fruity and green,” according to the Tribune, and its central note was concocted from an “exotic plant” kept secret by Estee Lauder.

The reviews? Maybe not what the billionaire expected. The Tribune quoted reviewers who gave surprising descriptions of its essence. One woman said it was reminiscent of “Jamba Juice,” while a man said it smelled of “upscale strip clubs.” Another lady called the bottle “appropriately phallus-like.”

But to Trump, the cologne would appeal to any customer. “The Fragrance is for everyone,” he told the Sun-Times.

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THE FACTS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES.

At least we hope they will, because that’s our approach to raising the $350,000 in online donations we need right now—during our high-stakes December fundraising push.

It’s the most important month of the year for our fundraising, with upward of 15 percent of our annual online total coming in during the final week—and there’s a lot to say about why Mother Jones’ journalism, and thus hitting that big number, matters tremendously right now.

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So we’re going to try making this as un-annoying as possible. In “Let the Facts Speak for Themselves” we give it our best shot, answering three questions that most any fundraising should try to speak to: Why us, why now, why does it matter?

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