US President Donald Trump kept a low profile on his Scottish golf course on Saturday, ahead of meetings with top British and European leaders, as questions swirled at home over his ties to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump arrived on Friday for a visit that has triggered protests in Scotland, with hundreds lining the streets of Edinburgh holding placards reading: “NOT MY PRESIDENT.”
The US leader told reporters on arrival that he would visit his two golf properties in Scotland – one in Turnberry on the west coast, where he was playing on Saturday, and the other near Aberdeen.
He is also due to meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Scottish First Minister John Swinney, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, whom he called a “highly respected woman”.
Trump to reporters: ‘Focus on other people’
Frustrated by ongoing questions about his administration’s handling of investigative files related to Epstein’s criminal charges and his 2019 death in prison, Trump told reporters to focus on bigger issues and “other people”.
“You make it a very big thing over something that’s not a big thing,” Trump said. “Don’t talk about Trump. What you should be talking about is the fact that we have the greatest six months in the history of a presidency.”
Trump was seen on the golf course on Saturday morning but had no public events scheduled. Reporters and supporters were kept at bay by heightened security.
White House officials hope some time out of the spotlight will allow the Epstein controversy to fade, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Protesters slam Trump’s Gaza policies
Away from the golf course, hundreds of anti-Trump protesters gathered outside the US consulate in Edinburgh, with some holding placards featuring images of Trump with Epstein.
Others carried pro-Palestinian signs.
Cat Cutmore, 31, a resident of Edinburgh, said she felt compelled to protest Trump’s visit due to her deep concern over the worsening situation in Gaza after 21 months of war, and what she described as the US president’s attacks on democratic principles.
“There comes a point where if you roll out the red carpet to somebody who has put citizens of his own country and people seeking asylum into prison camps, you’re complicit,” she said.
Locals fume over Trump’s ‘mother-branded’ golf course
Janet MacLeod Trotter, another Edinburgh resident and author of historical fiction, said she was particularly angry that Trump was capitalising on his mother’s name, which she shares.
During the trip, Trump will open a golf course near Aberdeen named after his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, who was born and raised on a Scottish island before emigrating to the United States.
“We’re just fed up with the way that he’s using political clout to browbeat people around the world ... He’s coming here and using that as a gimmick to help his business interests,” Trotter said.
Trump purchased the Turnberry property, which includes a hotel and golf course, for $60 million in 2014 in the hope of returning the course to the Open Championship rotation, but said his current visit was “not about that”.
The course has not hosted the event since 2009 amid concerns over inadequate accommodation and infrastructure for a tournament that attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees.
