Scorn follows Trump's return to Washington with golfers and a model aboard Marine One
Key Takeaways
- •President Trump abruptly cut short his weekend at Camp David and flew back to Washington aboard Marine One late Saturday night.
- •The return occurred as conflict mounted in Iran, a closely contested midterm election approached, and prices continued rising for Americans.
- •U.S. embassies across the Middle East, including in Israel, issued security alerts warning Americans in the region, fueling concerns about a potential major escalation.
- •Photographs showed Trump accompanied by golfers Gary Player and Bryson DeChambeau, as well as model Mikayla Demaiter, a group he described as "top advisers."
- •Journalists and commentators criticized the presence of the golfers aboard the helicopter, questioning the president's company amid escalating tensions.
President Donald Trump’s sudden return to Washington, D.C., came as war mounted in Iran, a closely contested midterm election with control of Congress at stake loomed and prices continued to rise for Americans nationwide. Photos showed Trump returning with a group he described as “top advisers.”
Getty photographer Graeme Sloan captured Trump aboard Marine One, the call sign for the presidential helicopter, after he abruptly cut short a weekend at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland’s Catoctin Mountains, late Saturday night. His return prompted fears of an impending “major escalation” after the U.S. Embassy in Israel issued a security alert for Americans in the Middle East.
“All Middle East US embassies have issued STEP alert warning to Americans in the region,” geopolitical expert Brett Erickson warned Saturday in a post on X. “This could certainly be a legitimate escalation.” STEP alerts are security advisories sent through the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, which lets Americans abroad register to receive safety updates from U.S. embassies.
Against that backdrop, Meredith McGraw, a White House reporter for the Wall Street Journal, said she was surprised by the people visible in Sloan’s photograph. “Looks like Trump flew back to the WH tonight from Camp David with Gary Player and Bryson DeChambeau,” McGraw wrote on X.
The photograph showed the faces of well-known golfers — Player, the South African Hall of Famer and winner of nine major championships, and DeChambeau, a two-time U.S. Open champion. Sloan’s caption did not mention Player but did identify another notable passenger: Mikayla Demaiter, a model and the girlfriend of DeChambeau.
Robyn J. Leader, an attorney, responded on X, “In the midst of an escalating war he started and he’s hanging out with golfers.”
Sam Stein, managing editor of The Bulwark, added on X, “Important to have your top advisors with you at critical global moments like this.”
