Latest news with #presidentialvisit
Telegraph
4 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
European leaders are disrupting Trump's golfing holiday at their peril
When president Donald Trump stepped off Air Force One on to Scottish soil, he had one thing on his mind. 'There's no place like Turnberry,' he told his travelling press pool beneath the wing of his presidential jet. His Ayrshire golf course, he continued, was 'the best … probably the best course in the world'. Minutes later, he climbed into the Beast – his armoured limousine - to travel 35 minutes along country lanes and through Scottish villages, lined with supporters, protesters, and the merely curious, to Turnberry. Mr Trump may be determined to have a break, but European leaders have other ideas. Willingly or otherwise, Mr Trump faces a string of meetings in the coming days as the Continent's power brokers sit down with the unpredictable president. For now, though, he is secure inside a ring of steel. The historic course, home to some of the most exciting Opens in history, has been locked down. It now sits inside an eight-foot fence, its fairways dotted with burly men in dark suits and earpieces. Snipers watch over the course from a watch tower. Police officers – some on quad bikes – patrol the famous course and the dunes that flank it. Mr Trump arrived with his golf clubs for four days at his two Scottish courses but without some of the trappings of a travelling American president. He travelled with a stripped-down retinue of aides. There was no chief of staff, director of communications, secretary of state or other cabinet ministers, who might be expected on an important foreign trip. His public weekend schedule showed no planned events. Instead, it was a chance to spend time at his golf course with his sons Eric, who manages the family businesses, and Don Jr. Officials insisted that this was a 'working trip' including a meeting with Sir Keir Starmer on Monday, although they were vague on agenda items. Yet all that changed shortly before Mr Trump flew out of Washington, when Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, announced on X that she would be meeting Mr Trump on Sunday as she closes in on a trade deal: Following a good call with @POTUS, we have agreed to meet in Scotland on Sunday to discuss transatlantic trade relations, and how we can keep them strong. — Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) July 25, 2025 EU members have drawn up a retaliatory hit list. The plan is to impose 30pc tariffs on bourbon whisky, yachts, soybeans and other American products if a deal cannot be reached by August 1 to lift US levies. Mrs von der Leyen had better tread carefully. A diplomat who has prepared ministers for meetings with Mr Trump said she was playing a high-risk game. 'Very dangerous,' they said. Mr Trump's chat with reporters at Glasgow Prestwick Airport showed a president relaxed and looking forward to four days of golf, but one who was quick to bristle when it came to policy and politics. Mr Trump left Washington bugged by the drip, drip, drip of headlines about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, the billionaire paedophile who took his own life in a jail cell six years ago. He flashed irritation and lobbed sharp words at reporters who asked him how much he knew about the case on Friday, but relaxed as soon as he could talk about the love of his life: golf and the course at Turnberry. 'Sean Connery helped get me the permits,' he claimed after landing. 'If it weren't for Sean Connery, we wouldn't have those great courses.' There is a lesson for European leaders looking to muscle in on his tee times with their trade demands or for John Swinney, the Scottish First Minister, who is likely to tell Mr Trump that his tariffs are hurting the Scotch whisky industry. When the chat with reporters turned from golf to more substantial matters, he said he had a simple message for Europe. 'On immigration, you better get your act together,' he said in another flash of passion. 'You're not going to have Europe anymore... This immigration is killing Europe.' Anyone meeting with Mr Trump will remember the lessons of Volodymyr Zelensky's Oval Office row. The Ukrainian president was roundly chastised by Mr Trump and his vice president for daring to push back on the US position. And by hosting leaders at his Turnberry and Aberdeenshire courses, Mr Trump retains home advantage even while on foreign soil. Sir Keir may have got the memo. Mr Trump billed their meeting as little more than a chance to celebrate their recent trade deal. Although the Prime Minister does run the risk of upsetting Mr Trump over plans to raise the plight of civilians in Gaza, British officials played down the chances of any major diplomatic announcements. 'It's not like other meetings where we would go in with deliverables we planned to announce,' he said. On Saturday, all that was far from Mr Trump's mind. He spent the day golfing with son Eric, and his ambassador to London. The sound of Billy Joel's 'Uptown Girl' and 'Memories' from the musical Cats drifted out from the dunes on Saturday morning as Mr Trump's motorcade of golf buggies arrived at the fourth hole. Photographers huddled on a mound in the dunes, hoping to get a shot of the president on the course. Mr Trump, wearing a white USA cap and dressed in black, waved at the mound before teeing off in the direction of Turnberry lighthouse. Cheers from his baseball-cap-wearing entourage could be heard above the din of the speakers as the group wasted little time in rattling off their drives. A photographer camped in the dunes with a long lens later claimed to have witnessed the president cheat on the third fairway. He said Mr Trump had been handed a ball by a caddy, which he then dropped to the floor and pushed forward a little with an iron before taking a swing. The golf course has been surrounded by an eight-foot-high metal fence, while dozens of officers patrolled the entrances to the beach from Turnberry all the way down to Maidens, the next town along the coast. A temporary watchtower had been erected to monitor the Turnberry perimeter with a sniper rifle trained on the course below. A drone scanned from above, and police boats patrolled the coastal waters. Asked whether there would be a repeat of protesters taking to the beach in front of the golf club, an officer said the incident in 2018 had likely convinced the authorities to close off the entire beach to the public. Fears that the visit would be a magnet for protesters appeared unfounded. Matt Halliday, from Stranraer, said he had been driving around for two hours trying and failing to find protests to join. He said Mr Trump had 'stamped all over Scotland' with his grand golf resort plans, strong-arming local farmers and 'bullying' the council over wind farm plans. One of his signs bore a picture of the president with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. 'I think it is going to bring him down,' he said. However, supporters were easier to find than protesters. Two wearing red 'Make England Great Again' hats arrived shortly after the president had disappeared over the crest of a dune. 'We love Trump,' said Kay English, 37, wearing a face mask sporting the president's face. Tom English, a 38-year-old driver, said the pair had driven up from Liverpool last night to catch a glimpse of the president. 'We support Maga, Trump and what he is doing,' he told reporters, adding: 'I like the way he is, the way he speaks. It is comedy gold. 'He is putting the people first. He is trying to help the whole world to make peace - he is the president of peace.' Mr English said he would return on Sunday and hopefully get within 'shouting distance' to offer words of encouragement to the president and cheer on his cost-cutting Doge unit. He added: 'We love Doge, we are trying to get that here through Reform. There is so much being wasted.' Mr Trump has long blurred the line between family, business and public life. But any world leader intruding on his golfing getaway had better be ready for a possible sharp response.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Major security operation underway at Trump's golf course in Scotland as police search grounds
A major security operation is underway at the visiting US president Donald Trump's golf course. A large number of police and military personnel have been spotted searching the grounds of the Trump Turnberry golf resort in South Ayrshire, on the first full day of his trip. The president flew into Scotland on Friday night, and after touching down at the nearby Prestwick Airport headed for the golf resort, which he bought in 2014. Road closures have been implemented by police with limited access for locals and members of the media. A few golfers were also spotted at the course during the search, enjoying an early-morning game, as the president prepares to play at the course. While the president is expected to spend much of his first day in Scotland on his golf course, Mr Trump has meetings scheduled with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Monday. Mr Trump drew crowds to Prestwick Airport on Friday evening as Air Force One touched down ahead of his four-day visit. Scots are set to gather across the country to protest his visit over the weekend. First Minister John Swinney, also set to meet with the president during his time in Scotland, has urged people to protest 'peacefully and within the law'. Saturday is set to be the first major test for Police Scotland during the president's visit, as it seeks to control demonstrations organised in Edinburgh, near the American consulate, and Aberdeen - both organised by the Stop Trump Coalition. They will be on alert as well for any demonstrations near the president's golf course. The force has asked for support from others across the UK to bolster officer numbers with both organisations representing senior officers and the rank-and-file claiming there is likely to be an impact on policing across the country for the duration of the visit. Some 1,500 police officers have been redeployed across England and Wales for Mr Trump's private visit following concerns from police that the trip would 'undoubtedly stretch' police resources. Chief Superintendent Rob Hay, president of the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents (Asps), said: 'The private visit of President Donald Trump to Scotland at the end of July will require the Police Service of Scotland to plan for and deliver a significant operation across the country over many days. 'This will undoubtedly stretch all our resources from local policing divisions to specialist and support functions such as contact, command and control.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Presidential visits to the Fed in the past have been endorsements of its work and independence—Trump's visit today? Not so much
ANALYSIS: Donald Trump is set to make a rare presidential visit to the Federal Reserve—only the fourth in U.S. history—amid escalating criticism of Jerome Powell's leadership and spending on the central bank's D.C. headquarters. While previous visits symbolized respect for Fed independence, Trump's stop comes after repeated attacks on interest rate policy and a public clash over renovation costs, raising fresh concerns about political pressure on the central bank. Donald Trump is taking his battle with Jerome Powell to the doorstep of the Federal Reserve. Literally. The president will be visiting the central bank at 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, returning to the White House a little over an hour later, per his public schedule. The move is unusual for a number of reasons. Primarily, because this is the first visit by a president to the central bank in nearly two decades—and only the fourth visit from the Oval Office in history. The context of this visit also raises eyebrows, as President Trump and his cabinet have been continually lobbying and criticizing the Fed since winning the Oval Office in January. In the past, visits from the president to the Fed have been viewed as endorsements—both of the chairman at the time and of the Fed's independence as a whole. For example, the last visit came from George W. Bush on Feb. 6, 2006, when he attended the swearing-in ceremony for his nominee, Ben S. Bernanke, as the fourteenth chairman of the Fed. Bush's attendance was seen as a backing not only of Bernanke but also of the independent nature of the Fed. When announcing his nomination, Bush told reporters in the Oval Office: 'In our economy, the Fed is the independent body responsible for setting monetary policy, for overseeing the integrity of our banking system, for containing the risk that can arise in financial markets, and for ensuring a functioning payment system. 'Across the world, the Fed is the symbol of the integrity and the reliability of our financial system, and the decisions of the Fed affects the lives and livelihoods of all Americans.' Prior to Bush's visit, the most recent example of a president visiting the Fed had been President Ford in July of 1975—again for a swearing-in ceremony in which the independence of the central bank was lauded. Speaking at the confirmation of Philip C. Jackson as chairman, President Ford said: 'The essence of the Federal Reserve System is independence. Independence of both the congress and the president, as well as the individual independence thought of each of its governors. I firmly and completely respect that independence.' The final example—but the first visit of its kind—came in 1937 when President Roosevelt attended the opening of the board's first building—the Eccles office which President Trump will likely be visiting today. Trump vs the Fed so far Even before Trump won the election, there were signs he may cause trouble for chairman Jerome Powell. Despite being the president to nominate Powell for the role, he made veiled threats about the security of the chairman's role. He told Bloomberg: 'I would let him serve [his term] out, especially if I thought he was doing the right thing.' Back then, the 'right thing' in Trump's mind was not to cut interest rates as it would give the economy, and the Biden administration at the time, a boost. Since taking the Oval Office in January that request has flipped to the other extreme. Trump has dubbed Powell 'dumb' and 'hard headed' for not cutting the base rate, adding he knows more than the Fed boss about interest rates. While some marketeers may agree with Trump's take that Powell and the Federal Open Market Committee are reacting too slowly to economic data, no analyst or investor wants to see the independence of the central bank threatened. As such markets reacted shakily when Trump threatened to fire Powell, and then stabilized when the president rescind the suggestion. After all, the federally-mandated independence of the Fed was written into law to protect it from the whims of politicians and instead mandate it to ensure the long-term health of the economy. While lambasting the policy of the Fed remains a common theme of the Trump administration (even yesterday, the president wrote on Truth Social that 'families are being hurt because interest rates are too high, and even our country is having to pay a higher rate than it should be because of 'Too Late [Powell].'') criticism is also being lobbied at wider-decision making. This has included Powell's management of the central bank's offices—which Trump will reportedly be touring today—with Russel Vought, director of the White House's Office of Management and Budget making public a letter he sent to the Fed chairman, saying the president is 'extremely troubled by your management of the Federal Reserve System' particularly relating to the 'ostentatious overhaul of [the Fed's] Washington D.C. headquarters.' Powell has since responded to, and clarified, some of the points raised in Vought's letter outlining: 'The project is large … because it involves the renovation of two historic buildings on the National Mall and that were first constructed in the 1930s. While periodic work has been done to keep these buildings occupiable, neither building has seen a comprehensive renovation since they were first constructed.' Though the Fed has independence over its business management and expenditure, Powell reaffirmed the bank's commitment to 'transparency for our decisions and to be accountable to the public'—announcing a new section of the Fed's website had been created to keep voters up-to-date with the latest developments. This story was originally featured on
BBC News
14-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
President Trump to meet Prime Minister on Scotland visit
Sir Keir Starmer will meet Donald Trump when the US president visits Scotland later this month, Downing Street has Trump is expected to travel to his golf resort at Menie in 10 said Sir Keir had accepted an invitation to meet during the "private" trip to Scotland confirmed last week that is was preparing for a presidential visit. It is understood there will be no private meeting with King Charles. However, Trump will make a full state visit to the UK later this year. The US president will be hosted at Windsor Castle from 17 to 19 will be his second state visit, having been hosted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2019 during his first term in second state visit is unprecedented, with second-term US leaders typically invited for tea or lunch with the whose mother Mary was born in Lewis, last came to Scotland in 2023, when he broke ground on a new 18-hole course at his Aberdeenshire golf president's company also owns the Trump Turnberry golf resort in South has often spoken of his affection for the country but his last presidential visit, in 2018, prompted large protests in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
