Michael Cohen apparently wanted Trump's 2015 campaign launch to feature elephants and women in bikinis

It turns out President Trump's wild 2015 campaign launch was actually the tame version.

The Washington Post is out with a new look back at the start of Trump's presidential campaign, which began with that unforgettable ride down a golden escalator in Trump Tower. But this whole event was nearly even more over-the-top, as the report says that some Trump associates, including his lawyer at the time, Michael Cohen, "pushed for a circuslike spectacle, complete with real elephants and women in bikinis."

This idea was scrapped, with others, including Corey Lewandowski, suggesting that "a more professional backdrop" just might be a good idea for the announcement of a presidential campaign. The Associated Press reports that Trump dismissed the elephant idea himself — because it was "too political."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Another scrapped idea was apparently Trump descending to his speech in an elevator rather than an escalator, as evidently, virtually everyone around Trump at the time thought the escalator ride was a really bad idea; having him go down an elevator was offered as a compromise. But the Post reports that Trump was totally unwilling to budge on that detail, reportedly saying, "No, I'm going down the escalator." And that he did.

Just over four years later, Trump is set to formally kick off his 2020 re-election campaign on Tuesday, although there's no word on what live animals may or may not be involved.