Standing on his golf course less than a mile from the Rancho Palos Verdes mudslide zone, where hundreds of homes are without gas and power, former President Trump on Friday called his property “very solid” and called on the government to help the troubled town.
“It’s a very wealthy area, but there are also older people who live here and have fixed incomes and houses that, you know, will be thrown into the Pacific Ocean if something is not done,” the former president said.
Trump spoke to reporters at a campaign news conference at his seaside Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles, which he bought from bankrupt developers in 2002 after the 18th hole slipped into the ocean.
The landslide-prone city is under a state of emergency issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom this month due to extreme ground movement brought on by back-to-back rainy winters. Neighborhoods near the golf course are under an evacuation warning issued by the city, with land moving at about 9 to 12 inches per week.
Before beginning his lengthy remarks at an outdoor lectern (with the Pacific Ocean behind him and Catalina Island visible after the morning fog cleared), Trump invited Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor John Cruikshank to speak.
“Obviously, I’m a little nervous. This is a big deal,” Cruikshank said, holding a red “Make America Great Again” cap in his hands.
Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor John Cruikshank holds a “Make America Great Again” hat as he listens to former President Trump speak at a news conference at Trump National Golf Course on Friday.
(Christina House/Los Angeles Times)
Cruikshank told the Times on Thursday that he had been trying to get into the Republican presidential nominee's schedule for several days. He had hoped to speak to Trump about the landslide victory before the news conference and had not planned to speak.
From the lectern, Cruikshank called for help for the city of 40,000 people.
“We think we can solve the problem, but we really need help from the state of California and the federal government,” he said. “We have solutions for that, but the problem is bigger than the city of Rancho Palos Verdes.”
Trump, who is actively pursuing his long-held plans to build as many as 23 homes on the property, has struggled over the years to obtain city approvals for development, largely because of the area's instability.
The original owners of the property, then called Ocean Trails Golf Club, filed for bankruptcy after the 18th hole fell into the Pacific during a landslide in 1999, while the course was still under construction. Trump bought the property in 2002 for $27 million.
On Friday, Trump mentioned the club while attacking San Francisco leaders, who he says have allowed the city to decline. Trump compared the costs of his club to a $1.7 million public restroom that opened this year in San Francisco.
“They built a bathroom for $1.7 million and it’s not even pretty. I saw pictures of it. I built all this for less than that,” he said, gesturing with his hand in reference to his property.
Regarding the landslides, Trump said they were “something that can be fixed.”
“This area is very solid,” he said of his property. “But if you go down a couple of miles, you’ll see something pretty amazing. The mountain is moving and it can be stopped, but they need help from the government. So I hope they get it.”
Trump did not indicate whether he was referring to the state or federal government.
City officials say the golf club is located about a half-mile from the active slide area.
Trump has repeatedly criticized the Golden State but praised his club, saying it never has to advertise because it is “always packed with golfers” and is “one of the best courses in the world.”
He added: “I have the ocean. Pebble Beach has the bay. The ocean is better than the bay.”
