President Donald Trump made an appearance at a glitzy gala at his New Jersey golf club just hours after the deaths of two U.S. troops had been confirmed.
Two U.S. troops died after an Iranian missile struck a base in Jordan on Friday. Trump, meanwhile, spent Saturday golfing at his Bedminster club, taking hours to finally address their deaths Saturday afternoon, when he called the development “a very sad thing.”
But the deaths apparently didn’t have too great of an impact on the president, as he spent the rest of his evening with a dressed-up MAGA crowd to attend the “America’s 250th Birthday Gala” at his Bedminster National Golf Club in New Jersey.
The party was also in support of MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell’s bid for governor of Minnesota. Trump was seen speaking to the crowd alongside Lindell, where he ranted about nonexistent voter fraud in the 2020 election he lost six years ago.
Like Trump, the MyPillow CEO, one of Trump’s closest allies, has repeatedly promoted lies about the 2020 election and has even suggested that “Satan” played a role in Trump’s loss to former President Joe Biden.
Some of the guests at the splashy MAGA event were seen in floor-length ball gowns, with one woman even wearing a dress that had the Declaration of Independence written on it. There was also a live bald eagle on display with its handler, according to images reviewed by the Daily Beast.
Guests were treated to a performance from Christopher Macchio, a pro-Trump singer, who performed the National Anthem. He will be performing at the World Cup Final later on Sunday.
The menu for the evening showed that guests dined on a surf and turf “Duet Entree” of roasted beef tenderloin and poached lobster.
They also were given a dessert called “The President’s Favorite Cake Trio a la Mode,” which featured “a historically accurate recreation of the favorite desserts of four of America’s favorite presidents,” which, of course, included “President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Famous Chocolate Cake.”
The White House did not respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
Trump spent the night in Bedminster ahead of his appearance at the World Cup Final in East Rutherford at the temporarily renamed New York New Jersey Stadium.
Earlier Saturday, several Trump flacks including Paul Ingrassia, Paolo Zampolli, and Andrew Giuliani, the son of the former New York City mayor and executive director of the White House’s World Cup task force, were spotted at the Bedminster ahead of the final match between Argentina and Spain.
But the deaths of U.S. troops underscore the rapidly deteriorating nature of Trump’s war in Iran. Iran has launched strikes at Jordan, Kuwait, and Qatar, as Tehran has said more than 50 people have been killed in Iran in recent weeks.
The death toll of U.S. service members in Trump’s war now stands at 16.
An Iranian drone strike killed six U.S. reservists in Kuwait in the opening days of the war, and one soldier died when Iran attacked a base in Saudi Arabia. Six additional soldiers died in Iraq when a refueling plane crashed, and a Navy helicopter pilot was presumed dead after an emergency landing in the Arabian Sea earlier this month.
Washington had reached a temporary ceasefire deal with Tehran in mid-June, but that deal has been undermined by repeated attacks in the region. It wasn’t helped by Trump also proclaiming earlier this month that the “Cease Fire is OVER!”
