Daragh Brophy reports from Turnberry, Scotland:
DONALD TRUMP DESCENDED (literally descended) into the Brexit aftermath in Scotland today – firing off broadsides at, amongst others, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, the entire European Union, and a reporter from the Guardian.
Ostensibly on a transatlantic jaunt to promote his golf courses in the country, he landed his Trump-emblazoned chopper on the lawn outside his Turnberry resort shortly after David Cameron’s resignation announcement, at around 9am.
On a cliff-edge
Dozens of journalists from the US and UK, and as far away as Germany and China, had signed up to cover the visit. Later, they were bussed out to the picturesque course for a slightly odd press event at the ninth hole.
Strange days
The presumptive GOP nominee for the White House unleashed his standard array of extreme opinions and off-the-cuff observations as the press op played out.
A protester got ejected just as the Q&A began (obligatory, at this stage) – but, despite the fact that the conference was staged just metres from a cliff-edge, the whole thing went off pretty much as you might expect.
By any normal standards, in other words, it wasn’t particularly normal.
What now?
In his first words, upon landing, Trump had hailed the UK’s vote to leave the EU as ”fantastic”.
He doubled down on those comments at the press conference later, saying he saw a clear parallel between the anti-European Union campaign on this side of the Atlantic and his own trailblazing effort in the US.
“People want to take their country back, they want independence,” he said, adding:
I think you’re going to have this happen more and more.
He mocked President Barack Obama for involving himself in the dispute (the president backed the Remain side in a highly publicised visit to London earlier this year).
And, taking aim at his likely rival for the White House, he said Hillary Clinton also got it wrong on Brexit when she rowed in behind Obama’s warning about the UK ending up at the “back of the queue” when it came to trade negotiations.
“Well she’s always misread everything,” Trump insisted.
She’s misread this and I was surprised that she was so bold and to say… Well the only reason she did it is because Obama wanted it, you know. If Obama wanted it the other way, if he said Leave, she would’ve said Leave.
He shied away, however, from weighing in on what Scotland should do next:
Well that’s up to the people of Scotland. And you know, really, we’ll leave it up to the people. I love the people of Scotland.
Who’s next?
There were also questions about David Cameron (he likes him, think’s it’s “too bad” he’s stepping down).
And, for a second, it almost looking like the outspoken mogul might endorse Boris Johnson for prime minister…
The fact that the former London mayor was on the ‘right side’ of the debate “gives him an advantage,” Trump said, before adding:
I don’t know him.
He also, as you might expect, complemented his own “nimble” campaign and took a pop at the anti-Trump brigade, after a threatened mass protest failed to materialise.
Finally, he called a journalist from the Guardian a “nasty, nasty guy” for having the temerity to ask a question about why he was so unpopular among UK politicians.
So, yes.
Appropriately for the occasion – pretty much par for the course.
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