Trump, in Britain, sees U.K. vote as being a lot about … Trump

TURNBERRY, Scotland — Donald Trump, in Scotland to promote his golf-resort business, seized on Britain’s surprising vote to leave the European Union to congratulate the people of the United Kingdom for having “taken their country back” and suggesting the same could happen in the United States this November.

Speaking at an event marking the reopening of a golf resort he owns here, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said he saw “a big parallel” between his own insurgent campaign for the White House and the movement that led to Britain cutting ties with the EU.

“There are great similarities between what happened here and my campaign,” Trump said. “People want to take their country back. They want to have independence. … They want to take their borders back. … They want to have a country again.”

At one point, Trump suggested the U.K. voters had voted to part ways with the European Union because President Obama had advocated otherwise.

“I actually was very surprised that President Obama would have come here, and he would have been so bold as to tell the people over here what to do,” Trump said. “I think that a lot of people don’t like him. If he had not said it, I think your result might have been different.”

Slideshow: Trump visits Scotland to reopen golf resort >>>

The vote, which Trump repeatedly called “great” and “historic,” had immediate political and economic repercussions, sending the global financial markets into turmoil. Prime Minister David Cameron, who led the failed campaign to remain in the EU, announced his intention to resign. And the British pound plummeted in value, sending stock markets around the world into a free fall.

But Trump dismissed concerns about how the turmoil might affect the United States, saying “nobody knows” what the long-term result might be. The real estate mogul suggested that the fluctuating value of the British currency might actually drive growth — for him and others. “Look, if the pound goes down, they’re going to do more business. When the pound goes down, more people are coming to Turnberry, frankly,” Trump said, referring to his golf course. “For traveling and for other things, I think it very well could turn out to be a positive.”

The Republican candidate’s comments came during a somewhat surreal press conference on the ninth hole of Trump Turnberry, a newly reopened luxury golf resort located on the western seacoast of Scotland. The two-day overseas trip, Trump’s first as a presidential candidate, was organized solely to promote Turnberry and another course the mogul owns in Aberdeen, Scotland, where the GOP hopeful is scheduled to visit Saturday.

But Trump’s visit came during a tumultuous moment for the United Kingdom. The candidate arrived early Friday morning in Scotland, one of the few parts of Britain — apart from London — where voters overwhelmingly sided against leaving the European Union.

The news transformed what the Trump operation had been treating as something akin to a public-relations junket to a suddenly newsy trip where Trump commanded the attention of the world stage. At least 100 reporters from all over the world were here to cover Trump’s visit to Turnberry, which at times blurred the lines between serious and surreal.

Accompanied by his three adult children — Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr. — the real estate mogul flew in by helicopter, where he stepped off the aircraft wearing a white “Make America Great Again” hat while being serenaded by two bagpipers. Several dozen staff members of the golf course, who had lined up on the front steps of the main building to greet the candidate, wore “Make Turnberry Great Again” hats and cheered wildly as Trump made his grand entrance.

Slideshow: Britain’s Brexit battle >>>

A couple of hours later, Trump walked up the rough alongside the ninth tee, where he took his spot behind a podium whose location he personally chose for the picturesque lighthouse in the background. After briefly referring to the so-called Brexit vote at the top of his remarks, the presidential hopeful then spent nearly 15 minutes talking about his new golf course, promoting the “spectacular” views over the sea and the “incredible” luxury suites — built so masterfully, he added, that none had roof or drainage problems.

“It’s a special location,” Trump told reporters. “The hotel is built to the absolute highest standards, and the course is built to the highest standards of golf. I think there will be nothing like it.”

At one point in the press conference, a reporter pressed Trump on whether he was talking to his foreign policy team about how to react to the referendum.

“Are you traveling with any of your foreign policy advisers? You knew this was going to happen today. There was going to be some sort of decision. Are you huddling with them?” the reporter asked.

Trump, who said he was his own No. 1 foreign policy adviser, downplayed the premise of the question.
“Well, I’ve been in touch with them. But there’s nothing to talk about,” he replied. “I thought this would be a good thing. I think it’ll turn out to be a good thing. Maybe short term not, but ultimately I think it will be a good thing.”

Trump’s presumptive rival, Hillary Clinton, put out a statement saying: “This time of uncertainty only underscores the need for calm, steady, experienced leadership in the White House to protect Americans’ pocketbooks and livelihoods, to support our friends and allies, to stand up to our adversaries, and to defend our interests. “

Trump defended his decision to take the trip, insisting he was there to support his children, who had spearheaded the project and many others as he focuses on campaigning for the presidency. And he also defended his decision to hold campaign events at properties he owns, insisting it is more out of convenience than pure promotion. But he rejected the idea of cutting ties with his business — insisting he would do so only if he wins the White House.

But he couldn’t resist trying to liken what he had done at Turnberry to what he might do if he is elected president in November. He said it was a “mini example” of what he would accomplish.

“But the country is not a golf course,” a reporter called out.

“No,” Trump replied. “[But] you’d be amazed at how similar it is.”