McIver is originally from
San Jose, California and moved to New York City at age 14 on a Ford Foundation Scholarship for dance. In New York, McIver trained at
George Balanchine's
School of American Ballet during the summers of 1965 and 1966, and was enrolled full-time in the advanced division courses at the School of American Ballet 1967–70.[6] She later earned an English degree at the University of Utah, graduating with honors in 1976.[6][7]
Professional dancer
In 1981, McIver appeared on
Broadway in the revival of Can-Can, a production which closed after five performances.[8]
Trump affiliation
In the 2000s, McIver worked with
Donald Trump as both an assistant and as a ghostwriter.[4][5] She co-authored Trump: Think Like a Billionaire (2005) and several other books, with Trump.[4][9]
2007 Trump deposition
In 2007, in a
deposition in a defamation lawsuit he brought against
Timothy L. O'Brien, Donald Trump named McIver as the likely author, in two books they wrote together, of overstated claims of his indebtedness in the midst of the 1990s real estate market crash, making his financial comeback appear more significant.[1][10]
McIver later issued a statement explaining that Melania Trump had shared with her a passage from Obama's 2008 convention speech as an example of her feelings. Due to a misunderstanding, McIver thought the passage expressed Mrs. Trump's own thinking, so she included that passage in the speech. In a statement McIver said the following according to the
Associated Press; "Over the phone, she read me some passages from Mrs. Obama’s speech as examples. I wrote them down and later included some of the phrasing in the draft that ultimately became the final speech."[14]
The Trump family declined McIver's offer to resign over the incident.[15][16]
Selected works
Trump: How to Get Rich with Donald J. Trump (2004)[17][18]
Trump: Think Like a Billionaire with Donald J. Trump (2004)[18][19]