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EXCL: Woody Johnson, the billionaire US ambassador to the UK, spent more than £1,000 on golf and dinner in a single day during a three-night stay at Donald Trump’s Scottish resort - and American taxpayers picked up the bill. My @TheScotsman story: https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/exclusive-taxpayers-pick-tab-billionaire-us-ambassadors-stay-donald-trumps-scottish-resort-2996147
If you're unaware of the ties between Trump and his extraordinarily wealthy ambassador to the UK, here's an accompanying article detailing their longstanding social connections. It includes a wig-themed birthday party. Forewarned is forearmed etc. https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/billionaire-bffs-conflicts-interest-surrounding-donald-trump-and-his-british-ambassador-2996230
Folk in the US may not be aware how Trump's Turnberry resort has discovered a rich new seam of revenue during his presidency. So here's a recap of how his flagship Scottish property is reaping plenty of US taxpayer dollars - while still running at a loss: https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/public-office-and-private-interests-ambassador-trip-highlights-tension-between-donald-trumps-presidency-and-his-turnberry-resort-2996246
The details of Woody Johnson's wee trip to Turnberry reached me via the fine folk at @weareoversight, who do sterling work with FOIA and lawsuits to obtain something that's proven elusive in the past four years - the truth. Give them a follow, and look into their work.
So sure, the sums involved here - £1,143 - aren't major. But the receipts for Johnson's stay at Turnberry cover just one day, and he stayed at Trump's resort for three nights. And the bill doesn't include the accommodation costs. The ambassador and his wife rented two rooms.
£1,143 might be a lot to you. It is to me. How would billionaires characterise it? Pocket change? For me, the key to this story is the transactional arrogance - a billionaire ambassador billing the US public for his stay at a billionaire president's heavily-indebted resort.
But don't let the sums involved obscure other issues at play. Trump was in the UK on a working visit, but his stay at Turnberry - when Johnson joined him - was described as a "private visit." While there, Trump played two rounds of golf, and took in a World Cup football match.
As my prolific Twitter pal @waltshaub points out, how could this be classified as official travel on the part of a US ambassador if the president was on a private visit to his own resort? https://twitter.com/waltshaub/status/1313953133807235074?s=20
Anyway, back to Ambassador Johnson. Here's the one-page receipt detailing his expenditure on *one day* of his stay at Trump's property. Isn't 'golf retail' a deliciously ambiguous phrase?
I asked the US embassy in London a series of questions in recent days, including why Ambassador Johnson stayed at Turnberry longer than Trump himself; why the receipt accounts for just one day of his trip; and whether he repaid any of the itemised expenditure.
A spokesman for the US embassy replied: “Ambassador Johnson has complied with all US government travel regulations.” I’ve asked to see those regulations and how they pertain to Mr Johnson’s trip. I’m still waiting.
While I'm waiting, it's worth highlighting other potential conflicts of interest involving Trump and his ambassador, who's an heir to the big pharma fortune of Johnson & Johnson, the firm which received $1bn from the Trump admin for 100m doses of its potential Covid-19 vaccine.
It was only three months ago - yeah, I know, it feels like three decades - but do you remember this @nytimes report alleging how Trump asked Ambassador Johnson to help secure the lucrative Open championship for his loss-making Turnberry resort? https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/21/world/europe/trump-british-open.html
Or perhaps you recall the concise report by the brill @Z_Everson, detailing how Ambassador Johnson's NFL team held a golf outing at Trump's NJ resort?: https://1100pennsylvania.substack.com/p/us-ambassador-to-britains-nfl-team
The Trump presidency is, in part, a story about the tension between public office & private interests. IMO, Ambassador Johnson's stay at Turnberry - though relatively insignificant monetarily - is a stark example. It's about ordinary folk picking up the bill for billionaires.
Thanks for reading, and if you're so inclined, please support my reporting by subscribing to @TheScotsman from just £3 a month. It's increasingly challenging to find the time and resources to pursue investigative reporting. But I can't do anything else. http://bit.ly/3cZaoC2
