Trump Arrives to Protests and Mockery in Country That Hates Him: ‘Twinned With Epstein Island’
The president is set to touch down in Scotland on Friday for a five-day stay at his luxury golf properties.
Steve Welsh - PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images
President Donald Trump will get no warm welcome in his mother’s homeland.
The president will land at Prestwick Airport, near Glasgow, Scotland, on Friday evening and immediately head to his golf resort at Turnberry, South Ayrshire, in the southwest of the country. He will then visit his other course in Aberdeen, in the northeast, before debuting a new 18-hole course bearing the name of his Scottish mother, Mary Anne MacLeod Trump.
Anti-Trump protests and marches are scheduled to take place throughout the weekend, with events planned in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and at his golf courses. The Stop Trump Coalition has planned marches that will kick off simultaneously in Aberdeen and Edinburgh.
A coalition of trade unions, disability advocates, climate activists, pro-Palestinian and Ukrainian solidarity groups, as well as American diaspora organizations, is also coordinating several days of events.
The political campaign group Everyone Hates Elon has already set the tone by sabotaging Trump International Golf Links in Aberdeenshire by placing a placard under its sign, claiming that it is “twinned with Epstein Island.”
Protesters placed a sign reading "Twinned with Epstein Island" beneath the Trump International Golf Links sign in Aberdeen.
Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images
The group also claimed responsibility for sticking a photograph of Trump and the disgraced financier on a bus stop near the U.S. embassy in London.
Get the best of The Beast delivered right to your inbox
By clicking “SUBSCRIBE” you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Even locals in his mother’s birthplace in the Outer Hebrides appear rankled by his impending visit.
“Trump is running scared from the Epstein files,” one local said on X, adding a warning, “Running to Scotland won’t help him. We’re ready - and waiting.”
Seven out of 10 Scots have ill feelings towards the U.S. commander-in-chief, according to the latest Ipsos poll.
Seven in 10 Scotts hold a negative view of President Donald Trump.
Leon Neal/Getty Images
“The Scottish public hold a broadly unfavorable opinion of Donald Trump,” Emily Gray, managing director of Ipsos Scotland, said after the figures were released in March.
One young man from Glasgow, interviewed by Scottish publication The National ahead of Trump’s visit, worded it slightly differently.
“You’re a p---k, man,” he said, using a derogatory term for a rude man. “Tyranny and authoritarianism just isn’t welcome in our country.”
The front page of Scottish newspaper "The National" captured the sentiment of many Scotts ahead of the president's visit.
The National
“I hate Donald Trump,” another person said Thursday on the streets of Glasgow, according to The National. “Get him out. Why is he coming? Why are we allowing him?”
“I heard he’s got a chronic illness. And I hope it takes him out soon! Please!” she added.
The White House described the visit as a “private trip,” though Trump is set for a Monday meet with the U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
President Donald Trump at the house in Tong, on the Isle of Lewis, where his mother was brought up before she emigrated to the United States.
Andrew Milligan - PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images
Trump will meet with politicians who have previously scorned him.
Greeting the president as he steps off Air Force One will be Scotland’s secretary of state, Ian Murray, who once backed a motion accusing Trump of “misogyny, racism, and xenophobia.”
Scottish National Party leader John Swinney, whom Trump will meet next week, urged the cancellation of September’s state visit after a televised shouting match erupted during the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s trip to the White House in February.
See more of our coverage in your search results.
Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.
Unlock a year of full access to The Looker and The Daily Beast for $35.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Looker and The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.
Sign in
Login dialog