Fans at the Irish Open cheered President Donald Trump after he announced the end of U.S. tariffs on Irish whiskey on Sunday.
Trump made the announcement while speaking at the award ceremony for the open, which was played at the Trump International Golf Club in Doonbeg, Ireland.
“Everybody’s been bugging me, saying, would you do me a favor? It’s so unfair what’s going on. Could you possibly take the tariffs off of Irish whiskey?” Trump said. “And I said, on behalf of the United States of America, I am going to take the tariffs off of Irish whiskey.”
The crowd reacted with huge applause and chants of “USA.”
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Trump also congratulated open winner Shane Lowry, who took home the victory for Ireland in a dominant fashion with an 11-shot lead.
Trump said he made a last minute decision to stay and “watch Shane win” on Saturday night.
The president has spent several days touring Ireland in anticipation of this weekend’s event. He met with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin on Saturday and voiced his support for Irish unification.
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The Republic of Ireland gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1922, while Northern Ireland, established in 1921, has remained part of the U.K.
“I don’t want to cause any problems, but I will tell you, I’d love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides, great people. They’re Irish people. How can they be bad, right?” Trump said in Dublin while on stage with Ireland’s prime minister, Micheál Martin. “I’d like to see a unified country. I think it would be a great feather in everybody’s cap if that happened. It’s going to happen eventually.”
He added that the U.K. “will have something to say about it obviously,” but reiterated that unification would be a “great thing.”
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said in a statement that the U.K. government’s stance on reunification remains unchanged.
“I am not aware that there is majority public support for another referendum, and until that changes, there will not be one,” Burnham told reporters in Parliament, according to Reuters.
This is a developing story. Check back soon for updates.
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