This Teen Wants You To Know There's More To Donald Trump Than Meets The Eye

Fifteen-year-old Edward Bourke is trying his best to sway the minds of a generation he says has been heavily manipulated by the media.

This is Edward Bourke, a 15-year-old school kid from Australia. He's a passionate supporter of animal welfare, an entrepreneur, a young monarchist, and Australia's biggest Donald Trump fan under 20.

Julian Morgans / Via Twitter: @MorgansJulian

In a profile in Vice last week, Edward presented himself to the world as a man not yet a boy. A teenager with an understanding of Donald Trump's presidential policies far surpassing most other 15-year-olds. Edward said he wanted nothing more than to dispel the "media spin" surrounding the reality TV star-turned likely Republican Presidential candidate.

"They [the media] were running a clip that made him look like a racist," he told Vice, "so I did some research and realised the clip had been misleadingly edited."

In an interview with BuzzFeed News, Edward elaborated on his comments: "I always respected Trump's business achievements," he said, "but then I got involved in his campaign and I saw the rest of the world wasn't getting a clear picture of what he was saying."

Mark Wallheiser / Getty Images

Keenly aware of the media's "desire to sell," Edward didn't blame them for the coverage which he believes has been negative, and, at times, false.

"Being President, you know, you need to be liked. It's not compulsory to vote over there, so you really, really, have to convince people to even get up out of bed to vote. For Donald Trump, he realised his audience were right-wing conservative Americans."

"There's a misconception about what he is saying, but in the end, what sells is controversial comments."

Controversy has followed the Trump campaign. Trump pledged that under his rule America would bar Muslims from entering the country, as well as consistently promising to "build a great wall" between the U.S and Mexico.

Tom Pennington / Getty Images

The wall, which Trump says he will make Mexico pay for, was just one of the disagreements Edward has with the millionaire property tycoon.

"I don't agree with everything he says... I don't agree that all Muslims should be barred from the country, not at all. However, you have to look at the target audience that he's appealing to in America. Right-wing conservative Americans."

Edward also runs an animal welfare foundation called Saving The Lion. When the topic of Trump's son's previous hunting exploits was brought up, he was quick to separate the actions of the younger Trumps from that of their father.

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savingthelion.org

"I think it's wrong to judge Donald Trump on the actions of his son," he said. "If you look back, when Donald was first asked about his son's hunting... he does shy away from it."

"He said he wasn't a hunter himself... He said he didn't understand why his sons, or anyone would do it."

The main focus for Edward, though, is to change Australia's perception of Donald Trump - starting from the schoolyard.

"I've managed to explain what Trump is really all about to some kids," he said. "I've moved them towards not hating them, which is good. I only recently got an email from someone saying that they'd actually changed their vote from (Democratic nominee) Bernie Sanders to Trump."

Edward runs both a website, theTrumpcampaign.com, and a Twitter account, Trump Australia, which he uses to "educate" those in Australia who aren't "getting the whole picture" when it comes to Trump's campaign.

Trump Australia @TrumpTriumph

The world is ready to welcome a new and greater America! #TrumpTriumph #MakeAmericaGreatAgain @realDonaldTrump

01:32 PM - 02 Nov 2015

"Some of the diplomatic roles, they don't fall under his skill set. He needs to give roles to people that can do the job, and I believe he can do that."

"I believe he is what's best for America."