SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
During his planned June 5 visit to Ireland, President Donald Trump may face protests like this one in St. Louis from 2017. (Photo: Paul Sableman, Wikimedia Commons)
As Irish PM Says Public Protest 'Welcome,' Trump Pushes for Private Meeting at His Own Golf Club
"Protest is allowed, and welcome."
May 17, 2019
President Donald Trump's unofficially planned visit to Ireland in June is reportedly "in doubt" due to the Trump's insistence that his meeting with Irish leader Leo Varadkar be held at one of the president's golf courses in the European country.
Varadkar, Ireland's Taoiseach, or prime minister, is inclined to meet with Trump--but the president, according to The Irish Times, is insisting that any meeting be at his golf resort in Doonbeg, County Clare. If not, the president's team told Irish officials, Trump will go to one of his resorts in Scotland.
That may also make it easier to avoid official business. Per The Irish Times:
While a trip to Scotland would not involve the president engaging in official activities, given that he will have already met the British prime minister and Queen Elizabeth during his state visit to Britain, a visit to Ireland would necessitate some formal engagement with the Government.
Varadkar and members of the government believe that protocol would be better served by hosting the meeting at a more neutral location, like Dromoland Castle some 50 kilometers away from Doonbeg.
A resort of its own, Dromoland has hosted a number of dignitaries over the years, including then-President George W. Bush in 2004.
That visit may be part of what's causing Trump's hesitation to attend meetings at Dromoland. Bush was greeted by thousands of protesters angry about the then-president's foreign policy priorities.
In comments to The Irish Times, Dromoland manager Mark Nolan said that accommodating the president on short notice would be a challenge, but that he welcomed it.
"Normally speaking, when I was handling the Bush visit planning started approximately four months prior because I had to negotiate with group bookings to relocate or find alternative arrangements for people who were already booked," said Nolan. "So that timeline doesn't exist if it is to happen here."
During a visit to the United Kingdom in July 2018, Trump made a point to avoid protesters in London, going so far as to hold meetings with the queen and Prime Minister Theresa May and to stay at, in the words of The Guardian, "places where protesters [could] be kept out of sight and earshot."
That may not be an option at Dromoland, especially since Varadkar publicly encouraged his country's population to protest Trump's visit if they so wish.
"Protest is allowed," said Varadkar, "and welcome."
"I would certainly never criticize anyone for taking part in a protest if that's the way they wish to express their views," Varadkar added.
Negotiations about the visit are ongoing between the two countries.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
President Donald Trump's unofficially planned visit to Ireland in June is reportedly "in doubt" due to the Trump's insistence that his meeting with Irish leader Leo Varadkar be held at one of the president's golf courses in the European country.
Varadkar, Ireland's Taoiseach, or prime minister, is inclined to meet with Trump--but the president, according to The Irish Times, is insisting that any meeting be at his golf resort in Doonbeg, County Clare. If not, the president's team told Irish officials, Trump will go to one of his resorts in Scotland.
That may also make it easier to avoid official business. Per The Irish Times:
While a trip to Scotland would not involve the president engaging in official activities, given that he will have already met the British prime minister and Queen Elizabeth during his state visit to Britain, a visit to Ireland would necessitate some formal engagement with the Government.
Varadkar and members of the government believe that protocol would be better served by hosting the meeting at a more neutral location, like Dromoland Castle some 50 kilometers away from Doonbeg.
A resort of its own, Dromoland has hosted a number of dignitaries over the years, including then-President George W. Bush in 2004.
That visit may be part of what's causing Trump's hesitation to attend meetings at Dromoland. Bush was greeted by thousands of protesters angry about the then-president's foreign policy priorities.
In comments to The Irish Times, Dromoland manager Mark Nolan said that accommodating the president on short notice would be a challenge, but that he welcomed it.
"Normally speaking, when I was handling the Bush visit planning started approximately four months prior because I had to negotiate with group bookings to relocate or find alternative arrangements for people who were already booked," said Nolan. "So that timeline doesn't exist if it is to happen here."
During a visit to the United Kingdom in July 2018, Trump made a point to avoid protesters in London, going so far as to hold meetings with the queen and Prime Minister Theresa May and to stay at, in the words of The Guardian, "places where protesters [could] be kept out of sight and earshot."
That may not be an option at Dromoland, especially since Varadkar publicly encouraged his country's population to protest Trump's visit if they so wish.
"Protest is allowed," said Varadkar, "and welcome."
"I would certainly never criticize anyone for taking part in a protest if that's the way they wish to express their views," Varadkar added.
Negotiations about the visit are ongoing between the two countries.
President Donald Trump's unofficially planned visit to Ireland in June is reportedly "in doubt" due to the Trump's insistence that his meeting with Irish leader Leo Varadkar be held at one of the president's golf courses in the European country.
Varadkar, Ireland's Taoiseach, or prime minister, is inclined to meet with Trump--but the president, according to The Irish Times, is insisting that any meeting be at his golf resort in Doonbeg, County Clare. If not, the president's team told Irish officials, Trump will go to one of his resorts in Scotland.
That may also make it easier to avoid official business. Per The Irish Times:
While a trip to Scotland would not involve the president engaging in official activities, given that he will have already met the British prime minister and Queen Elizabeth during his state visit to Britain, a visit to Ireland would necessitate some formal engagement with the Government.
Varadkar and members of the government believe that protocol would be better served by hosting the meeting at a more neutral location, like Dromoland Castle some 50 kilometers away from Doonbeg.
A resort of its own, Dromoland has hosted a number of dignitaries over the years, including then-President George W. Bush in 2004.
That visit may be part of what's causing Trump's hesitation to attend meetings at Dromoland. Bush was greeted by thousands of protesters angry about the then-president's foreign policy priorities.
In comments to The Irish Times, Dromoland manager Mark Nolan said that accommodating the president on short notice would be a challenge, but that he welcomed it.
"Normally speaking, when I was handling the Bush visit planning started approximately four months prior because I had to negotiate with group bookings to relocate or find alternative arrangements for people who were already booked," said Nolan. "So that timeline doesn't exist if it is to happen here."
During a visit to the United Kingdom in July 2018, Trump made a point to avoid protesters in London, going so far as to hold meetings with the queen and Prime Minister Theresa May and to stay at, in the words of The Guardian, "places where protesters [could] be kept out of sight and earshot."
That may not be an option at Dromoland, especially since Varadkar publicly encouraged his country's population to protest Trump's visit if they so wish.
"Protest is allowed," said Varadkar, "and welcome."
"I would certainly never criticize anyone for taking part in a protest if that's the way they wish to express their views," Varadkar added.
Negotiations about the visit are ongoing between the two countries.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.