Donald Trump received an unexpected reality check from an unlikely source this week: patrons at one of his own golf clubs, who offered a surprisingly harsh verdict on the state of his presidency.
Trump International Golf Club Dubai boasts every luxury amenity imaginable: an infinity pool, a state-of-the-art fitness center, upscale restaurants and lounges, and even a gift shop stocked with hats bearing Trump’s signature slogan, “Make America Great Again.”
What it appears to be missing, however, is an abundance of Trump supporters.
Residents of the club told The Washington Post that Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran is not one they support.
Since the conflict began, energy prices have spiked globally, putting strain on businesses.
Oil prices have surged by about 35 percent. Overall, energy prices are up 3.8 percent.
The war has also had a devastating impact on Dubai’s tourism industry, with the country being one of Iran’s targets for retaliatory attacks earlier in the year.
As a result, many residents of the golf club said Trump’s handling of the war in Iran shattered the goodwill he had built during his Gulf tour, where he touted major investment deals and portrayed himself as a “no war president.”
Bertie Jones, a 23-year-old British expatriate, said he had once expected Trump to deliver economically but now feels deeply disillusioned. “On the business side, I thought he was going to do a lot,” Jones told the Post. “But I’ve lost all trust in him.”
Omar Al Busaidy, a Dubai businessman who had welcomed Trump’s return to office, said many in the UAE initially believed Trump’s promises to avoid new conflicts.
“I’m not going to lie, I had high hopes,” he said. “But we got played.” Al Busaidy argued that Gulf leaders had consistently warned against provoking Iran—“Don’t poke the bear”—but that Trump “either miscalculated or misread the situation.”
Others questioned the broader impact of the conflict. One resident, Tom, told the Post that Trump had caused “horrendous regional destabilization” and made it difficult “for anyone to like him,” while Neil Rodgers, 57, criticized the president for launching military action only to retreat afterward. “He escalated the war and then it seems like he’s walked away,” Rodgers said.
And the discontent has reached beyond the golf club. One Dubai resident, Khaled Al Kaabi, told the Post: “Trump has only created problems for the world, then left others to solve them.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
It comes as polls have shown that Americans are keen for the war to end and that many do not even think the war was worth it in the first place.
The latest CBS News/YouGov survey, conducted June 17-19, showed that 78 percent of Americans say the conflict should stop now.
That includes a majority (60 percent) of Republicans, as well as 56 percent of MAGA Republicans.
Some 69 percent of Americans also said they do not think the war was worthwhile.
Meanwhile, the more respondents reported struggling with higher gas prices, the more likely they were to favor ending the conflict immediately.
Overall, 57 percent of Americans said the war has created more problems than it has solved.
