WASHINGTON – President Trump said Wednesday that he never spoke to his ambassador to Britain about asking the British government if he could help lead the world-famous British Open golf tournament at the Trump Turnberry complex in Scotland.
Ambassador Robert Wood Johnson IV told several colleagues in February 2018 that he had been asked to see if he could arrange for the tournament to be played on Trump property and his deputy warned him not to do so because it would be of little use. ethics of the presidency for private gain, The New York Times reported Wednesday.
Apparently Johnson felt pressured to try, and a few weeks later he raised the idea of Turnberry hosting the Open with Scotland’s secretary of state, The Times reported. The episode left several American diplomats uneasy, and the ambassador’s deputy, Lewis A. Lukens, sent emails describing what had happened to colleagues at the State Department. Mr. Johnson then forced Mr. Lukens out.
When asked about the report at a coronavirus briefing on Wednesday, Trump declined to speak to Mr. Johnson about the matter, although he managed to promote his Scottish golf course at the same time.
“No, I never spoke to Woody Johnson about it, about Turnberry,” Trump said. “Turnberry is a highly respected course, as you know, one of the best in the world. I read a story about it today, and I never spoke to Woody Johnson about doing it, no. ”
The White House, State Department and Mr. Johnson’s embassy were asked to comment before the article was published, and all refused to address the matter directly. In a Twitter post Wednesday, Johnson did not deny the episode, but instead said he did not violate any regulations. “I have followed the ethical standards and requirements of my office at all times,” he wrote.
Johnson, the billionaire heir to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical fortune and owner of the New York Jets, told several people about the matter.
Lukens confirmed Wednesday that Johnson had informed him of Trump’s request. “I advised him that doing so would violate federal ethical rules and would be generally inappropriate,” Lukens wrote in a text message to NPR.
