As the US president fires thousands in the name of preventing alleged fraud, he continues to spend taxpayer funds on his outings
Donald Trump will be visiting Scotland for five days, but he won’t spend most of his time in high-level diplomatic meetings or conducting other state business. He’s primarily visiting two of his golf resorts, and dedicating a new golf course named in honor of his mother, who was born in Scotland.
In other words, Trump appears to be going on a junket, paid for by US taxpayers, to check out his golf properties in a foreign country.
The White House has shared few details about Trump’s upcoming “private” trip, which starts on Friday and runs through 29 July. The secrecy is deliberate – to avoid questions and criticism of a presidential visit that is mainly focused on promoting Trump’s business interests. As of Tuesday, three days before Trump’s expected arrival in Scotland, the US administration still had not shared the president’s itinerary with the Scottish police force, which is bracing for protests in several cities.
Most coverage of Trump’s trip has focused on the fact that the White House decided to ban Wall Street Journal reporters from the press pool that will travel with the president, in retaliation for the outlet’s recent report connecting Trump to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But few media outlets have asked why Trump is visiting Scotland in the first place, especially since the White House is planning another, more elaborate state visit to the UK in September, when Trump will be hosted by King Charles.
