Donald Trump's Irish visit: Inside the Government’s preparations for his Dublin and Clare trip
US president Donald Trump on the 15th green at Trump International Golf Links & Hotel in Doonbeg, Co Clare, during his visit to Ireland in May 2023.
Preparations for the visit of US president Donald Trump to Ireland next week are going into overdrive, as the Government prepares for a diplomatic balancing act.
Mr Trump is due to arrive here on Saturday, September 12, with a visit to Dublin and his golf course in Clare all expected to take place.
One Government source said planning for a visit of a US president came with several distinct stages and in the early days, everything appears hypothetical.
However, once a date is agreed, the preparation process goes into “overdrive”.
Preparations themselves have been under way for weeks, with the Government tick-tacking with the US administration about the itinerary.
The scale of next week’s visit, however, is not near the level of Joe Biden’s visit to Ireland in April 2023, where the former US president took individual trips to Belfast, Louth, Dublin and Mayo across three days.
Any time one of these major visits take place, there is always a significant focus on the security procedures.
The Biden visit cost over €31m for the entire Garda security operation, which included overtime payments, accommodation and key equipment costs.
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Ahead of any visit of a US president, secret service personnel will arrive in the country well in advance and will scope out the potential locations where Mr Trump will be going, while also liaising with gardaí.
Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly has declared Mr Trump’s visit as an “extraordinary event”, with this leading to cancelled leave and changed rest days for frontline gardaí.
This has led to some consternation within the force, particularly as the number of ‘extraordinary events’ have risen amid Ireland’s EU presidency.
One senior Government source said gardaí would be prepared for all protests which take place, saying these have been commonplace any time a US president has visited.
They cited the protests which took place during the recent visit of Mr Biden, while also referring to major protests which took place during Ronald Reagan’s visit to the State in 1984.
Protest plans are already under way, with the Irish Neutrality League and Irish Anti-War Movement preparing for disruption in both Dublin and Clare.
Mr Trump is expected to be greeted on the tarmac of Dublin Airport by the Government, with expectations Tánaiste Simon Harris will be waiting at the end of the red carpet.
Donald Trump's golf resort in Doonbeg, Co Clare. Picture: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images
How the two interact will be keenly watched, with Mr Trump throwing barbs at Ms Connolly during the Taoiseach’s most recent visit to the White House.
When criticisms made by Ms Connolly about Mr Trump’s ongoing war in Iran were raised with him, the US president mistakenly referred to the President as “he”.
“Look, he's lucky I exist,” Mr Trump said.
Ms Connolly has repeatedly said she will meet with any world leader, as is her duty as president, but whether she moves to criticise him to his face during any courtesy call will be watched closely.
Alongside his call to Áras an Uachtárain, Mr Trump is due to meet with Taoiseach Micheál Martin at Farmleigh House.
It’s likely the two leaders will deliver a statement after their meeting.
Since Mr Trump returned to the White House in 2025, the Government has sought to build a relationship with the US administration, particularly as the US president seeks to reorder relationships in areas like trade.
Mr Martin has visited Mr Trump at the White House twice, with the two men seemingly having a good relationship.
“They’ve built up a lot of respect,” one Government source said.
The US president also picked up on plenty of Irish messaging during Mr Martin’s most recent trip to Washington, with the Taoiseach at pains to inform Mr Trump that a Cork man, Stephen Moylan, was the first person to use the phrase “United States of America”.
While there had been some talk of Mr Trump making a visit out to Ballsbridge to turn the sod on the new US embassy, this appears to have been replaced by a visit to the Deerfield Residence — the house of US ambassador Ed Walsh.
It’s then wheels up in Dublin Airport, with Mr Trump heading to Doonbeg for the Irish Open.
While Mr Trump is visiting his golf course in a more private capacity, it is likely there will be some diplomatic engagement while in Co Clare.
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