After a bitter and protracted dispute with local people and environmentalists, who fought to save the dunes and the dwellings around them, Trump eventually won planning permission to build \u201cthe world\u2019s greatest golf course\u201d. At the time, he promised a \u00a31bn coastal resort including expansive courses, luxury housing and high-rise timeshare flats \u2013 promises Beyts points out have yet to be fulfilled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere\u2019s the huge development that was heralded as replacement jobs for the oil industry? I don\u2019t understand how the politicians were so taken in,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n
Beyts, who later won a moral victory<\/a> in court against Trump International staff who photographed her when she paused to answer the call of nature on a walk around the dunes, will not be protesting against the president\u2019s latest visit.<\/p>\n People gather at Prestwick airport near Glasgow ahead of the arrival of the US president. Photograph: Tolga Akmen\/EPA<\/p>\n \u201cI fully support people who want to demonstrate and if I thought it would make any difference to people in Gaza or Ukraine I would, but I worry it plays to his ego.\u201d<\/p>\n David Milne was one of the local people whose refused to budge after Trump tried twice to buy his home, a former coastguard station Trump described as a \u201cvisual slum\u201d<\/a>, and then attempted to secure a compulsory purchase order. \u201cHis entire attitude was one of entitled arrogance \u2013 \u2018I will do what I like.\u2019 People up here have a bad habit of saying: \u2018I don\u2019t think so,\u2019\u201d says Milne.<\/p>\n On one of Trump\u2019s previous visits to Menie, Milne flew a Mexican flag from his flagpole in solidarity with those targeted during the Republican\u2019s first presidential term. This time he will fly the saltire.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are upset that this is being described as a private visit yet there\u2019s a huge cost to the country for security. Things are tight enough \u2013 why are we paying for this? He\u2019s pulling British police into a deliberate stunt for publicity for his new course,\u201d says Milne.<\/p>\n While Beyts and Milne are willing to reflect on their years of resistance, and the close friendships forged, they acknowledge that others are exhausted by the relentless disruption and media interest that accompanies proximity to the resort. The police have already knocked on Milne\u2019s door to warn him about access restrictions.<\/p>\n Donald Trump and his family opening his Turnberry hotel and golf course in 2016. Photograph: Findlay\/Alamy<\/p>\n However, Tommy Campbell, a local trade unionist who will compere the \u201cfestival of resistance\u201d planned for Aberdeen city centre on Saturday, says peaceful protesters will get as close to the resort as possible on Tuesday morning, when Trump is expected to open his new golf course, with the intention of writing protest messages in the sand at Balmedie beach while the tide is out.<\/p>\n \u201cThe world has changed since he first appeared in Aberdeen as a businessman and some people were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt,\u201d says Campbell. \u201cPeople have seen through him and he\u2019s not welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n Like Beyts and Milne, Campbell also expresses his disappointment that Keir Starmer and the Scottish first minister, John Swinney, will meet Trump during the president\u2019s visit. \u201cThey are not representing the true feelings of the people of Scotland,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Get the day\u2019s headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Across Scotland, on the west coast, the residents of Turnberry are facing road diversions, security checkpoints and a swelling police presence, with transit vehicles trundling along the country roads. There is metal fencing around Trump\u2019s luxury resort and lines of police in hi-vis jackets blocking the beach, where the late Janey Godley regularly stood <\/a>to greet him with her infamous handwritten protest sign: \u201cTrump is a cunt.\u201d<\/p>\n Police outside the perimeter of Turnberry golf course on Friday. Photograph: Robert Perry\/PA<\/p>\n In March, Trump described members of a pro-Palestine group accused of vandalising the Turnberry course<\/a> by painting the grass with the words \u201cGaza is not 4 sale\u201d as \u201cterrorists\u201d.<\/p>\n On Friday, some local people were exercised about the \u201cpartial lockdown\u201d they found themselves in. One pensioner questioned why the UK government was contributing to expensive policing for what is a private visit while limiting his generation\u2019s winter fuel payments. But others mentioned the employment Trump had brought to the area.<\/p>\n Menie\u2019s new course is dedicated to the president\u2019s late mother, Mary Anne Trump, who was raised on the Isle of Lewis, further up the west coast, before immigrating to the US.<\/p>\n In Lewis\u2019s main town of Stornoway, Sarah Venus has rehung the protest banner she was ordered by the local council to remove in May. It reads: \u201cShame on you Donald John,\u201d a maternal-style admonishment prompted by his treatment of the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at a White House press conference in February.<\/p>\n The banner will now go on a tour of the island around private homes, as Trump\u2019s visit continues into next week. \u201cThis time the protests will be a bit different because of the broader context,\u201d says Venus.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are beginning to connect the dots and realise this is a transnational struggle against fascism. It\u2019s not just happening over there in the US and maybe there\u2019s an opportunity to be vigilant and head it off over here.\u201d<\/p>\n Quick GuideContact us about this storyShow The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know.<\/p>\n If you have something to share on this subject you can contact us confidentially using the following methods.<\/p>\n Secure Messaging in the Guardian app<\/p>\n The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said.<\/p>\n If you don’t already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS<\/a>\/Android<\/a>) and go to the menu. Select \u2018Secure Messaging\u2019. <\/p>\n SecureDrop, instant messengers, email, telephone and post<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1753515909_379_4000.jpg\")
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