Today In Republicans & Culture

Perhaps the worst Irishman in these United Snakes is the Speaker of the House. Not that any of Trump's Irish Mafia are competent or capable of anything, apparently.

The irony of the mishaps was that Trump has surrounded himself with Irish Americans, from presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway to press secretary Sean Spicer. Two of the leading Republicans involved in Thursday’s cultural gaffes — Pence and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) — identify as Irish American.

Ryan introduced both Trump and Kenny at the luncheon, praising the United States’ relationship with Ireland and lauding the nation for “all she has given us.”

One of his statements caused a fair bit of head-scratching: “Americans, especially American Irish, are always trying to endear ourselves to the Irish. Think about it. We went from a president who plays a lot of golf to a president who owns a lot of golf courses,” Ryan said. “That is about the closest thing you can get to royalty in Ireland.”

Trump, indeed, owns a golf course in Ireland and has golfed on various courses  at least nine times since taking office. And he recently played 18 holes with pro golfer Rory McIlroy, who is from Northern Ireland. But aside from that connection, some Irish people questioned the reference to royalty and golf, a sport that originated in Scotland.

Yes, he said, "Think about it. We went from a president who plays a lot of golf to a president who owns a lot of golf courses.” That's some intellectual heft there. He really must be as smart as they say.