Trump says he had ‘no involvement’ in Pence’s stay at his Ireland hotel

President Trump on Wednesday denied any involvement in Vice President Pence’s decision to stay at the president’s property in Doonbeg, Ireland, during an official visit to the nation, as Democrats and watchdogs expressed outrage.

“I had no involvement, other than it’s a great place,” Trump told reporters following an announcement on opioid grants.

{mosads}”I heard he was going there, but it wasn’t my idea for Mike to go there,” he continued. “Mike went there because his family’s there. That’s my understanding of it.”

Asked whether he suggested Pence stay at his property, as the vice president’s own staff said, Trump said, “I don’t suggest anything.”

The comments further muddled the message around how Pence ended up spending two nights at Trump’s property in Doonbeg, which is located on the opposite side of Ireland from Dublin, where the vice president had meetings with Irish leaders.

Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, told reporters on Tuesday that Trump had not requested or commanded that Pence stay at his property, but that he suggested it.

Pence himself later defended the move, telling reporters that it was important to him to visit the town because of his family roots.

The vice president’s office issued a statement early Wednesday attempting to further distance Trump from the decisionmaking process.

“At no time did the President direct our office to stay at his Doonbeg resort and any reporting to the contrary is false,” the vice president’s office said.