Donald Trump went to South Korea, and promoted his golf course

The president came under fire for promoting his personal golf club on the world stage

By Matthew Rozsa

Staff Writer

Published November 8, 2017 9:43AM (EST)

 (Getty/Jim Watson)
(Getty/Jim Watson)

President Donald Trump is under fire for plugging his New Jersey golf course during a speech that was supposed to be about American policy in the Korean peninsula.

"Republicans, myself included, criticized the Clintons for turning public service into a money-making machine after Bill Clinton left the White House," MSNBC's Joe Scarborough said Wednesday. "Donald Trump is doing it now. It is unbecoming. That’s the sort of garbage that makes moderate voters, Republicans, go, ‘you know what, I’m going to stand in line for a very long time. I’m going to send that guy a message.'"

Co-host Mika Brzezinski added, "The word is gross."

During his speech on Tuesday night, Trump praised Korean golfers as "some of the best on Earth" before adding, "And you know what I’m going to say — the women’s U.S. Open was held this year at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey."

The president went on to praise the South Korean golfer Sung Hyun Park, who won the tournament this year. He also noted that seven other South Korean golfers finished within the top 10 at the tournament held in the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

"Congratulations. Now, that’s something. That is really something," Trump told the audience to applause.

The controversy surrounding Trump's businesses has not been limited to the golf club. He has also been criticized for using the Trump International Hotel as a hub for high-ranking political and business officials during his administration, which could be perceived as plugging that business. He has faced similar accusations for his use of Mar-a-Lago for official government business, such as a meeting earlier this year with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.


By Matthew Rozsa

Matthew Rozsa is a staff writer at Salon. He received a Master's Degree in History from Rutgers-Newark in 2012 and was awarded a science journalism fellowship from the Metcalf Institute in 2022.

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Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Donald Trump Joe Scarborough Mika Brzezinski North Korea South Korea