Trump plays golf in Scotland as protests loom over visit
Trump's arrival at his Turnberry resort has turned this picturesque and normally quiet area of southwest Scotland into a virtual fortress, with roads closed and police checkpoints in place.
Officers on quad bikes, police sniffer dogs and horses patrolled the storied links -- which has hosted four men's British Opens -- and its adjacent sandy beaches and grass dunes that hug the course.
The 79-year-old leader touched down at nearby Prestwick Airport on Friday evening, as hundreds of curious onlookers came out to see Air Force One and try to catch a glimpse of its famous passenger.
The 45th and 47th president has professed a love of Scotland, where his mother was born, but has controversial politics and business investments in the country have made for an uneasy relationship.
Unsurprisingly, his five-day visit has divided the local community.
'A lot of people don't trust Trump and I'm one of them. I think the man is a megalomaniac,' retiree Graham Hodgson told AFP.
'He's so full of himself. I think he's doing a lot of damage worldwide with his tariffs. And I think it's all for the sake of America, but at the moment I think America is playing the price as well for his policies.'
But at Prestwick Airport a boy held a sign that read 'Welcome Trump' while a man waved a flag emblazoned with Trump's most famous slogan -- 'Make America Great Again'.
'I think the best thing about Trump is he's not actually a politician yet he's the most powerful man in the world and I think he's looking at the best interests of his own country,' said 46-year-old Lee McLean, who had travelled from nearby Kilmarnock.
'Most politicians should really be looking at the best interests of their own country first before looking overseas, which unfortunately most leaders of the world actually do,' he told AFP.
Trump's visit has seen Police Scotland embark on a massive security operation in which it has asked for support from other forces around the UK to bolster officer numbers.
The Stop Trump Coalition has announced demonstrations near the US consulate in the Scottish capital Edinburgh and another in Aberdeen, where Trump owns another golf resort, for Saturday.
Police will also be monitoring any other protests that might spring up near Turnberry.
With no public meetings in the diary for Saturday, Trump was expected to jump in his golf cart and play what he called Friday 'the best course anywhere in the world'.
He is due to discuss trade with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday and is also due to meet UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer while in Scotland. - AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
21 minutes ago
- The Star
1st LD: U.S., EU reach trade deal: Trump, EU chief
LONDON, July 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen claimed Sunday that they had reached a trade deal under which the United States would impose a baseline tariff of 15 percent on European Union (EU) goods. The announcement was made at a joint press briefing Sunday afternoon following trade talks at the Trump Turnberry in South Ayrshire, Scotland. Pharmaceuticals were excluded from the agreement, while existing 50 percent tariffs on EU steel and aluminium exports to the United States will remain in place. Although both leaders described the deal as a step toward restoring "trade balance" and promoting more equitable two-way commerce, the agreement allows the United States to impose a broad 15 percent tariff on EU goods while securing zero-tariff access for a range of strategic American exports. In contrast, the EU has pledged to purchase 750 billion U.S. dollars' worth of American energy and commit an additional 600 billion U.S. dollars in investments in the United States. At the press briefing, Trump claimed the agreement would enable American cars to re-enter the European market and make U.S. agricultural exports more accessible in the EU.
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Epstein furor undermining public trust, Republican election hopes, two US lawmakers say
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The uproar over disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could undermine public trust in the Trump administration, as well as Republican hopes of retaining control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections, two U.S. lawmakers said on Sunday. Republican Representative Thomas Massie and Democratic Representative Ro Khanna, who want the House of Representatives to vote on their bipartisan resolution requiring full release of the government's Epstein files, said the lack of transparency is reinforcing public perceptions that the rich and powerful live beyond the reach of the judicial system. "This is going to hurt Republicans in the midterms. The voters will be apathetic if we don't hold the rich and powerful accountable," Massie, a hardline conservative from Kentucky, told NBC's "Meet the Press" program. Republicans hope to add to their current 219-212 House majority -- with four seats currently vacant -- and 53-47 Senate majority in November 2026, although the U.S. political cycle traditionally punishes the party of the sitting president during midterm elections. Khanna said Attorney General Pam Bondi triggered "a crisis of trust" by saying there was no list of Epstein clients after previously implying that one existed. The change in position unleashed a tsunami of calls for her resignation from Trump's MAGA base. "This is about trust in government," the California Democrat told "Meet the Press." "This is about being a reform agent of transparency." President Donald Trump, who is playing golf and holding bilateral trade talks in Scotland, has been frustrated by continued questions about his administration's handling of investigative files related to Epstein's criminal charges and 2019 death by suicide in prison. Massie and Khanna believe they can win enough support from fellow lawmakers to force a vote on their resolution when Congress returns from its summer recess in September. But they face opposition from Republican leaders including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who sent lawmakers home a day early to stymie Democratic efforts to force a vote before the break. Johnson, who also appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press," said he favors a non-binding alternative resolution that calls for release of "credible" evidence, but which he said would better protect victims including minors. "The Massie and Khanna discharge petition is reckless in the way that it is drafted and presented," Johnson said. "It does not adequately include those protections." Massie dismissed Johnson's claim as "a straw man" excuse. "Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted," he said. "They're hiding behind that." Trump, who weathered two impeachments and a federal probe into contacts between his 2016 campaign and Russia during his first presidential term, has tried and failed so far to distract attention from the Epstein controversy six months into his second term. On Saturday, Trump repeated his claims without evidence that 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and other Democrats should be prosecuted over payment for endorsements from celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Beyonce and the Reverend Al Sharpton. "Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted!" Trump said on social media. Last week he accused former President Barack Obama of "treason" over how the Obama administration treated intelligence about Russian interference in U.S. elections nine years ago, drawing a rebuke from an Obama spokesperson. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, said on Sunday that Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence, had found new information that investigators initially discovered no evidence of Russian election interference but changed their position after Obama told them to keep looking. "I'm not alleging he committed treason, but I am saying it bothers me," Graham told "Meet the Press." "The best way to handle this is if there is evidence of a crime being committed, or suspected evidence of a crime being committed, create a special counsel to look at it," Graham added. Democratic Representative Jason Crow dismissed Gabbard's claims, telling the "Fox News Sunday" program that the national intelligence director had turned herself into "a weapon of mass distraction." The Department of Justice has said it is forming a strike force to assess Gabbard's claims. (Reporting by David MorganEditing by Colleen Jenkins and Leslie Adler)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Trump says US will work with Thailand and Cambodia, adds both 'want to settle'
A view of broken windows at a damaged hospital, caused by Cambodia's shelling in Sisaket province, as Cambodia and Thailand each said the other had launched artillery attacks across contested border areas early on Sunday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said the leaders of both countries had agreed to work on a ceasefire, Thailand, July 27, 2025. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha TURNBERRY, Scotland (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday he believed both Thailand and Cambodia wanted to settle their differences after he told the leaders of both countries that he would not conclude trade deals with them unless they ended their fighting. "I spoke to both of the prime ministers, and I think by the time I got off, I think they want to settle now," Trump told reporters at the start of a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Turnbery, Scotland. Trump said he believed Thai and Cambodian officials were due to meet in coming days. (Reporting by Andrew Gray; Writing by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Will Dunham)
