(AFP) – Donald Trump has abandoned any qualms he had in his first term about making money on the side while serving as president, as he unabashedly promotes his business interests. In the latest instance of him blending diplomacy, pageant, and the profit motive, Trump on Tuesday inaugurated another golf course bearing his name in the town of Balmedie as he concluded a five-day visit to Scotland. The ceremony, which featured bagpipes, fireworks, and a Trump campaign song — the Village People’s “YMCA” — was broadcast live on the White House YouTube channel.
Trump had led UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on a tour of the course on Monday. And Trump on Tuesday welcomed Scotland’s leader, First Minister John Swinney, who has ruffled feathers by granting subsidies to hold a golf tournament at the Trump property.
– ‘Deeply troubling’
“All of this looks like foreign governments paying, or paying tribute to, Donald Trump’s businesses in apparent attempts to curry favor with him and receive better treatment from him on key policy issues including trade deals,” said Noah Bookbinder, head of an NGO called Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). Bookbinder called it “deeply troubling” that US diplomacy could be guided by the financial interests of the Trump family. A White House official denied there was anything awry in Trump’s golf diplomacy stay in Scotland, saying the president’s assets are in a trust managed by his children and there is no conflict of interest.
The 79-year-old president teed off Tuesday to play the new golf course with his son Eric, who led the project. “We wanted this to be the greatest 36 holes anywhere on Earth. And there’s no question that that’s been achieved,” said the younger Trump. A journalist then asked Trump if blurring the line between his official duty as president and trying to make money amounted to a conflict of interest. “I haven’t heard that,” Trump said, immediately changing the subject to his golf game. “Did you get to see my drive in the first hole? … Pretty long, pretty long,” Trump said.
Eric and Donald Trump Jr., who was also here for the course inauguration, are both executive vice presidents of the Trump Organization, a holding company that features a wide range of Trump properties and other assets. During his stay in Scotland, Trump also received European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen at another opulent Trump golf resort in the southwestern town of Turnberry.
– Cryptocurrencies
The Trump family has more than a dozen ritzy golf resorts scattered around the world that can host receptions or tournaments, and the president has expressed hopes that the British Open will be played at their property in Turnberry one day. Trump’s sons are involved in a range of other businesses, encouraged openly by their father from the White House. The president in particular has gotten involved in a number of cryptocurrency endeavors that have inflated his wealth as his government actively promotes the burgeoning sector of the economy.
Trump was roundly criticized for hosting a private dinner in April for the top 25 holders of $TRUMP, a crypto product associated with him and called a meme coin. He has promoted this product on his social media platform Truth Social, which is part of the company Trump Media. Trump also uses the platform for official government announcements on anything from tariffs to ties with Russia.
– World Liberty Financial
Trump’s wife Melania is also involved in moneymaking endeavors, including a new documentary series produced by Amazon. The president and Steve Witkoff, his envoy for Russia and the Middle East, are linked through their families to a cryptocurrency company called World Liberty Financial. The company — which lists Trump as “co-founder emeritus” on its website — came under virulent criticism over a recent transaction with a company in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.
During a spring tour of the Middle East, Trump agreed to a request from UAE authorities to be able to buy cutting-edge US electronics. While on the same trip, Trump agreed to accept a Boeing jetliner as a gift from Qatar to the United States, dismissing howls of protest from the Democrats over a gesture which they called a blatant conflict of interest. During Trump’s first term in office from 2017-2021, the Trump Organization declared a moratorium on investments with private companies in other countries. This time around there is no such abstention.
– Aurélia END
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