Trump staged a photo op at his Florida golf course that was designed to use the presidency to promote his business.
Video:
Trump said, “Any sports media there? I know you’re not sports. Any — any sports media? They’re going to have a little Coast Guard challenge. So, enjoy the course. One of the great courses of the world. The 17th hole. I think all of you were watching my shot, right? Did you see it? The shot and then a birdie. They’ll say I took a triple bogey, but I actually got a birdie. Go ahead and enjoy. I know you ate. It’s an honor to have you at the course. And you’ll come back. The job you did in Florida and, frankly, especially the job, as you know, the job they did in Texas saved 16,000 people. It’s unheard of. I just want to thank you. The coast guard is fantastic. And I said come use my course. I didn’t know I’d be flooded. But that’s okay. You guys go have a good time. Let me know who won. We’ll get them a little trophy.”
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Trump has dodged the press and even blocked their view so that they could not film him playing golf, but he invited the media on to the course so that they could listen to him use members of the Coast Guard as props while he promoted his business.
The presidency is being abused by a man who is using the office for financial gain. Trump could have hosted members of the Coast Guard at the White House if he wanted to thank them, but this event wasn’t about the Coast Guard. The photo op was all about Trump getting some free publicity for his business by using the platform of the presidency to get press coverage for an event that was not newsworthy.
If Democrats win back any part of Congress in 2018, investigating Trump’s conflicts of interest and abuse of the presidency to promote his businesses must be a top priority.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
