At 11:50 this morning, the President of the United States made a special stop on his way to promote his private golf course in Doonbeg, County Clare, Ireland. For exactly 35 minutes, a rambling Donald Trump stood at the podium inside the 250-year-old Deerfield Residence in Dublin, Ireland, to speak to a room full of our Embassy personnel, Irish business leaders, and government officials. For exactly the next 35 minutes, the president read from the cheat sheets in his three-ring binder, he compared Kamala Harris to cage fighting, gave the room a lesson on how golf games are scored, complained about NATO and threatened that there would be an announcement about that soon, joked that the first lady chose to stay home because the flight was too long, before saying to a room full of Irish people, apparently thinking he was being funny, “Let me tell you, you are some of the most vicious bastards.”
Thank you for another informative message! Without you and others like you, I'm certain that we in the UK would know very little about the ins and outs of DT's shenanigans.
I've spoken to friends and family about it but sadly, quite a few say, 'What can we do about it?' or 'How do you know what's going on?' and 'We can't change anything'.
Well, I know because I make it my business to find out! Thankfully, I've always had an enquiring mind; when my children were learning about the internet in the 1980's, I didn't want to be left behind, so I went to my own classes and loved every minute of it! I've always been frustrated by the 'sit by the window and watch the world go by' brigade. What a waste of time!
Anyway, I digress - you'll have to excuse me, as I'm popping over to YouTube to watch the Jimmy Kimmel interview...
I concur with everything you say, I too brought my first computer in the 1980’s and then realised I needed to know how to use it for my children. I too talk about USA and get the same push back, so I now drip feed information and people are beginning to listen. James Talarico interview will leave you stunned and teary because even though I am not religious his form of Christianity is very much what mine would be. I just hope against hope he prevails and is not cheated out of a place in the senate. I might even pray for him to win !
My reply to Heather was rather light-hearted but like most people I'm crying a bit inside. None of this is to do with Nationality but to do with Humanity. I also don't have any particular religion but sending out good, positive thoughts is never wasted! I'll do the same - there's power in numbers. 🩷
Wherever Trump goes he leaves a slimy trail of hurt and discontent. In the meantime Mark Carney is seeing President Zelensky and helping him with a deal that suits them both.
I watched the James Talarico interview and was blown away by it. What a charming funny gentle soul he is, but with a real ability to cut through the rubbish and hype to get his message across.
I am not religious but this man said all the things that religion should be and he left me feeling just a little bit better about what at the moment seems like a very rotten corrupt world. I pray he wins in Texas and that you guys make it happen. You need him to clean up the rotten mess left by Trump.
I watched the Jimmy Kimmel/James Talarico interview and I thought how refreshing is was to listen to someone who doesn't have bile in his mouth. All we hear from DT are nasty insults, threats and lies. Plus, his attempt to bribe his followers, indeed anyone who might be bought for money, is disgraceful.
James Talarico would be a breath of fresh air so I truly hope he has the success that he deserves. It was also great to hear the funny stories like the 'stolen pen' incident!
James Talarico is charming and funny and clearly deeply religious. He seems to live his belief and not just play lip service to it. I hope he wins in Texas. I also hope he believes in the separation of church and state. I am not Christian and hearing someone quoting scripture in the context of politics gives me pause, not because I think he shouldn’t believe in his religion but because I run into many people who think I need to believe in their religion.
I think he was not so much pumping the religion as explaining how Jesus would have behaved to people and trying to explain we should be more loving caring and kind and not give space to the money lenders !
I am very anti religion as was brought up in a convent, so my religion is the above - loving caring and kind without expecting anything in return.
Thank you Heather for your words. Ancestors named Sullivan the other Scots-Irish Cochran..
When Irish blood runs in your veins, you carry more than a name - you carry a history.
It’s more than ancestry.
More than a surname traced through parish books or ship manifests.
It’s the memory of fields worked, songs sung, roads walked, and storms endured.
Its resilience carried quietly, backbone made from iron that unbends.
It’s pride without needing to boast.
Wherever you are in the world, that history travels with you.
We don’t back down or flinch we are the land, sky and the very breath of the wind.
November 3rd is in 51 days. Do what you can to assist your neighbors to get to their voting locations or to drop boxes for their ballots. Donate time or money to campaigns. Run through the Voter’s tape. A Blue Wave to just begin washing the garbage out the doors of Congress and even in your states as well as local seats. — Vote
Exactly how I feel - have been to Ireland twice and found my GGGrandfather’s house - felt the history/connection with pride looking out over the fields, villages, visiting pubs, singing,
As bad luck would have it, my wife and I arrived in Ireland for vacation a day before President Numbnuts did. I wore my “ Make Orwell fiction again” t shirt and got plenty of compliments from the local Irish and follow visitors from around the world. Trump ruins everything seemed to be the theme of the day and we couldn’t even find the protest to participate in.
What an imbecile and oaf he is to make the statements he did. An absolute international embarrassment to the U.S.
What this experience here in Dublin taught me is that MAGA is indeed a small minority and Trump and the GOP enablers will drown in the upcoming midterms. Fortunately Trump won’t be able to buy the elections and minority rule won’t succeed, even in our wobbly democracy. Bring on the Blue Wave! Oh yeah, visit Ireland if you can.
Heather I've seen the footage of the orange Dumpkof's visit to Ireland and the demonstration of Dubliners giving their opinion. Well done Ireland! I must say that you have tremendous fortitude in sitting through Trump's tedious speeches. I actually feel sorry for the Irish politicians having to listen to his word salad. As for giving a opinion about potential Irish unity; Donald I have some advice for you. Keep out of issues you know nothing about.
Many of the best and most fearless sources of truth online are women. Thank you thank you! Just thank you! The Two Heathers are my heroes. You mirror my concerns and voice my own observations. I save your post for last each morning. Thank you.
Re cheating at golf: Yes, Trump himself doesn’t cheat - if he hits the ball into the rough (which is quite often), a Secret Service agent zooms ahead in a golf cart, locates the ball, and tosses onto the fairway. If he can’t find the ball, he tosses an identical one into the fairway. So, no, he doesn’t cheat “himself”. He also violates golf protocol. Of course, he always drives from the tee first. Golf protocol mandates that all players wait until all have teed off, and then they all move forward to find their balls. Trump never waits. He finds his ball, wherever the SS agent has put it and takes his second shot. He continues this pattern until he reaches the green, doesn’t wait for his companions, and putts the ball. So he has completed the hole before any of his companions are near the green. Then he can give himself any score he wants, because no one else sees how many shots he takes. This pattern was documented by the guy who wrote his pre-presidential biography. They played golf together (the author is a very good golfer). There were no SS agents then, but Trump never plays at courses he doesn’t own, so he always has a designated person, probably a caddy, who takes care of the balls in the rough. The National Golf Association should acknowledge that he does a great disservice to the game. But they’re probably afraid that ICE will come after them, too. Nothing like having your own personal gestapo.
You can adorn an uncouth buffoon in gold and riches and all kinds of paraphernalia, but an uncouth buffoon remains a buffoon life long. § I was always told we (my family) were the orange men or Protesten part of northern Irland, Ulster called the Scotch-Irish. So as a child I wondered if I was of Scottish decent or Irish decent. And then it didn’t matter, because I liked the sound of both their voices. Trump might have a grandmother belonging to the Irish in his family as we all seem to have someone, but that goodness has been watered down to nothing long ago and the ruthless part of him was certainly developed from the German great Grandfather Frederich who was forced to leave his ‚Heimat‘ (for the second time) because he dodged the draft (sound familiar?) the first time, went back to Germany and hoped no one would remember- they did. So Trump cultivates the nicer part of his ancestry and pushes his weight on the Irish and the Irish are smart enough to know the difference and call a spade a trump. Three cheers for the Irish ☘️
Thank you Heather, for telling the truth and keeping us informed. Wish I was a little fly on the wall at that meeting in Ireland. Trump is such an embarrassment as he totally misrepresents our country. Thank God the Irish know better, and they were probably laughing in their seats not with him but about him. I am also from Irish descent and I could see my grandparents, who were Republicans shaking their heads and saying, who is this moron. He thinks he's funny, he thinks he's smart, he thinks he's the king of the world, but we know better. I am hoping that the midterms turn things around.
Bravo to the Irish for standing up to the bully!!! And shame on their government for hosting him! I wonder why the people in the room laughed at his absurd statements? Why did they not just get up and walk out in protest?
I have dropped Google as my search engine and instead use DuckDuckGO...I do not watch any mainstream media on TV...only my local news and then the station gets changed...I have even stopped watching MSNow, CNN etc., and rely on Substack, The Guardian and The AP for information
Good for the Irish who spoke their minds loud and clear.
We need to be more like them…let him know how we REALLY feel.
The Talarico interview was wonderful and there is NO comparison between him and Paxton.
Read Paxton’s history..that speaks for itself..he’s a dishonest disbarred adulterer no wonder Trump is supporting him.
Talarico is a good man…period.
Watch the interview if you haven’t already ..let it rack up more views.
Shame on ABC for their hypocrisy…they allowed Ted Cruz to hawk his politics NOT his book on The View last week…the message still gets through even if Cruz is not running for office. Their cowardice is sad to say the least.
I was privileged to have been able to do a 30-day trip around all of Ireland about a decade ago. It was an amazing trip, and the people were truly wonderful. And I am grateful that "Those Irish “vicious bastards” have flooded the streets of Dublin, calling him a warmonger and a racist." However, I'm very concerned about the level of antisemitism that has arisen in Ireland, much more so than a lot of other countries. Is that not also racist? It seems that many Irish citizens are talking out of both sides of their mouths. And I will not entertain the myth that "anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.
Okay, I'll bite. Anti-Zionism is NOT anti-Semitism! Zionism is a modern political movement that in its simplest form advocates for an independent homeland for Jews.
Trump may flaunt Doonbeg as the Go to Golf Course (3,000 miles on the taxpayer) but I'm sure I enjoyed my golf day at Parknasilla more (and I paid for my Day in the Sun)
Dear Heather,
Thank you for another informative message! Without you and others like you, I'm certain that we in the UK would know very little about the ins and outs of DT's shenanigans.
I've spoken to friends and family about it but sadly, quite a few say, 'What can we do about it?' or 'How do you know what's going on?' and 'We can't change anything'.
Well, I know because I make it my business to find out! Thankfully, I've always had an enquiring mind; when my children were learning about the internet in the 1980's, I didn't want to be left behind, so I went to my own classes and loved every minute of it! I've always been frustrated by the 'sit by the window and watch the world go by' brigade. What a waste of time!
Anyway, I digress - you'll have to excuse me, as I'm popping over to YouTube to watch the Jimmy Kimmel interview...
Love from the UK.🇬🇧
I concur with everything you say, I too brought my first computer in the 1980’s and then realised I needed to know how to use it for my children. I too talk about USA and get the same push back, so I now drip feed information and people are beginning to listen. James Talarico interview will leave you stunned and teary because even though I am not religious his form of Christianity is very much what mine would be. I just hope against hope he prevails and is not cheated out of a place in the senate. I might even pray for him to win !
Thank you Charlotte,
My reply to Heather was rather light-hearted but like most people I'm crying a bit inside. None of this is to do with Nationality but to do with Humanity. I also don't have any particular religion but sending out good, positive thoughts is never wasted! I'll do the same - there's power in numbers. 🩷
Wherever Trump goes he leaves a slimy trail of hurt and discontent. In the meantime Mark Carney is seeing President Zelensky and helping him with a deal that suits them both.
I watched the James Talarico interview and was blown away by it. What a charming funny gentle soul he is, but with a real ability to cut through the rubbish and hype to get his message across.
I am not religious but this man said all the things that religion should be and he left me feeling just a little bit better about what at the moment seems like a very rotten corrupt world. I pray he wins in Texas and that you guys make it happen. You need him to clean up the rotten mess left by Trump.
Hello Charlotte,
I watched the Jimmy Kimmel/James Talarico interview and I thought how refreshing is was to listen to someone who doesn't have bile in his mouth. All we hear from DT are nasty insults, threats and lies. Plus, his attempt to bribe his followers, indeed anyone who might be bought for money, is disgraceful.
James Talarico would be a breath of fresh air so I truly hope he has the success that he deserves. It was also great to hear the funny stories like the 'stolen pen' incident!
Keep the faith!
Love from the UK.🇬🇧
James Talarico is charming and funny and clearly deeply religious. He seems to live his belief and not just play lip service to it. I hope he wins in Texas. I also hope he believes in the separation of church and state. I am not Christian and hearing someone quoting scripture in the context of politics gives me pause, not because I think he shouldn’t believe in his religion but because I run into many people who think I need to believe in their religion.
I think he was not so much pumping the religion as explaining how Jesus would have behaved to people and trying to explain we should be more loving caring and kind and not give space to the money lenders !
I am very anti religion as was brought up in a convent, so my religion is the above - loving caring and kind without expecting anything in return.
Thank you Heather for your words. Ancestors named Sullivan the other Scots-Irish Cochran..
When Irish blood runs in your veins, you carry more than a name - you carry a history.
It’s more than ancestry.
More than a surname traced through parish books or ship manifests.
It’s the memory of fields worked, songs sung, roads walked, and storms endured.
Its resilience carried quietly, backbone made from iron that unbends.
It’s pride without needing to boast.
Wherever you are in the world, that history travels with you.
We don’t back down or flinch we are the land, sky and the very breath of the wind.
November 3rd is in 51 days. Do what you can to assist your neighbors to get to their voting locations or to drop boxes for their ballots. Donate time or money to campaigns. Run through the Voter’s tape. A Blue Wave to just begin washing the garbage out the doors of Congress and even in your states as well as local seats. — Vote
Exactly how I feel - have been to Ireland twice and found my GGGrandfather’s house - felt the history/connection with pride looking out over the fields, villages, visiting pubs, singing,
As bad luck would have it, my wife and I arrived in Ireland for vacation a day before President Numbnuts did. I wore my “ Make Orwell fiction again” t shirt and got plenty of compliments from the local Irish and follow visitors from around the world. Trump ruins everything seemed to be the theme of the day and we couldn’t even find the protest to participate in.
What an imbecile and oaf he is to make the statements he did. An absolute international embarrassment to the U.S.
What this experience here in Dublin taught me is that MAGA is indeed a small minority and Trump and the GOP enablers will drown in the upcoming midterms. Fortunately Trump won’t be able to buy the elections and minority rule won’t succeed, even in our wobbly democracy. Bring on the Blue Wave! Oh yeah, visit Ireland if you can.
Why do you think Musk won’t use Starlink as he did in24???
Heather I've seen the footage of the orange Dumpkof's visit to Ireland and the demonstration of Dubliners giving their opinion. Well done Ireland! I must say that you have tremendous fortitude in sitting through Trump's tedious speeches. I actually feel sorry for the Irish politicians having to listen to his word salad. As for giving a opinion about potential Irish unity; Donald I have some advice for you. Keep out of issues you know nothing about.
Wait for him to add Irish reunification to his tally of wars he alone has settled.
Many of the best and most fearless sources of truth online are women. Thank you thank you! Just thank you! The Two Heathers are my heroes. You mirror my concerns and voice my own observations. I save your post for last each morning. Thank you.
Re cheating at golf: Yes, Trump himself doesn’t cheat - if he hits the ball into the rough (which is quite often), a Secret Service agent zooms ahead in a golf cart, locates the ball, and tosses onto the fairway. If he can’t find the ball, he tosses an identical one into the fairway. So, no, he doesn’t cheat “himself”. He also violates golf protocol. Of course, he always drives from the tee first. Golf protocol mandates that all players wait until all have teed off, and then they all move forward to find their balls. Trump never waits. He finds his ball, wherever the SS agent has put it and takes his second shot. He continues this pattern until he reaches the green, doesn’t wait for his companions, and putts the ball. So he has completed the hole before any of his companions are near the green. Then he can give himself any score he wants, because no one else sees how many shots he takes. This pattern was documented by the guy who wrote his pre-presidential biography. They played golf together (the author is a very good golfer). There were no SS agents then, but Trump never plays at courses he doesn’t own, so he always has a designated person, probably a caddy, who takes care of the balls in the rough. The National Golf Association should acknowledge that he does a great disservice to the game. But they’re probably afraid that ICE will come after them, too. Nothing like having your own personal gestapo.
You can adorn an uncouth buffoon in gold and riches and all kinds of paraphernalia, but an uncouth buffoon remains a buffoon life long. § I was always told we (my family) were the orange men or Protesten part of northern Irland, Ulster called the Scotch-Irish. So as a child I wondered if I was of Scottish decent or Irish decent. And then it didn’t matter, because I liked the sound of both their voices. Trump might have a grandmother belonging to the Irish in his family as we all seem to have someone, but that goodness has been watered down to nothing long ago and the ruthless part of him was certainly developed from the German great Grandfather Frederich who was forced to leave his ‚Heimat‘ (for the second time) because he dodged the draft (sound familiar?) the first time, went back to Germany and hoped no one would remember- they did. So Trump cultivates the nicer part of his ancestry and pushes his weight on the Irish and the Irish are smart enough to know the difference and call a spade a trump. Three cheers for the Irish ☘️
Thank you Heather, for telling the truth and keeping us informed. Wish I was a little fly on the wall at that meeting in Ireland. Trump is such an embarrassment as he totally misrepresents our country. Thank God the Irish know better, and they were probably laughing in their seats not with him but about him. I am also from Irish descent and I could see my grandparents, who were Republicans shaking their heads and saying, who is this moron. He thinks he's funny, he thinks he's smart, he thinks he's the king of the world, but we know better. I am hoping that the midterms turn things around.
Bravo to the Irish for standing up to the bully!!! And shame on their government for hosting him! I wonder why the people in the room laughed at his absurd statements? Why did they not just get up and walk out in protest?
I have dropped Google as my search engine and instead use DuckDuckGO...I do not watch any mainstream media on TV...only my local news and then the station gets changed...I have even stopped watching MSNow, CNN etc., and rely on Substack, The Guardian and The AP for information
Thank you again for a great column
Good for the Irish who spoke their minds loud and clear.
We need to be more like them…let him know how we REALLY feel.
The Talarico interview was wonderful and there is NO comparison between him and Paxton.
Read Paxton’s history..that speaks for itself..he’s a dishonest disbarred adulterer no wonder Trump is supporting him.
Talarico is a good man…period.
Watch the interview if you haven’t already ..let it rack up more views.
Shame on ABC for their hypocrisy…they allowed Ted Cruz to hawk his politics NOT his book on The View last week…the message still gets through even if Cruz is not running for office. Their cowardice is sad to say the least.
We have a lot of work to do…let’s get rolling…
V O T E.
Excellent article . What a wonderful way you have with words 🌟 Thank you .
Oops - hit the wrong button- I am proud of the Irish and my common ancestry - definitely vote and get this orange goon and his sycophants OUT!!!!
I was privileged to have been able to do a 30-day trip around all of Ireland about a decade ago. It was an amazing trip, and the people were truly wonderful. And I am grateful that "Those Irish “vicious bastards” have flooded the streets of Dublin, calling him a warmonger and a racist." However, I'm very concerned about the level of antisemitism that has arisen in Ireland, much more so than a lot of other countries. Is that not also racist? It seems that many Irish citizens are talking out of both sides of their mouths. And I will not entertain the myth that "anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.
Okay, I'll bite. Anti-Zionism is NOT anti-Semitism! Zionism is a modern political movement that in its simplest form advocates for an independent homeland for Jews.
Posting at 1 am? Did you get your own Natalie? (PS. Amazing article, as always.)
Trump may flaunt Doonbeg as the Go to Golf Course (3,000 miles on the taxpayer) but I'm sure I enjoyed my golf day at Parknasilla more (and I paid for my Day in the Sun)