Mike Pence forced to defend his stay at Trump property in Ireland

Vice President Mike Pence is meeting Tuesday with leaders in Dublin after staying overnight at a Trump property on the other side of Ireland, prompting Democrats to accuse him of “funneling” taxpayer money to his boss.

Mr. Pence flew from an airport near Mr. Trump’s golf club in Doonbeg, on the west coast, to meet with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and other dignitaries 180 miles away in the east-coast capital.

The vice president and second lady are scheduled to fly back to Doonbeg later Tuesday, raising eyebrows from Democrats who are worried that President Trump is profiting from the presidency.

“You took an oath to the Constitution, not to @realDonaldTrump,” Rep. Ted Lieu, California Democrat, tweeted. “Funneling taxpayer money to @POTUS by staying at this Trump resort is sooooooo corrupt.”

Mr. Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, dismissed the criticism, saying the odd logistics were a byproduct of Mr. Trump dispatching Mr. Pence to Poland at the last minute because of Hurricane Dorian.

Mr. Pence initially planned to finish a European swing at Doonbeg to explore his family roots. His team had to rearrange the order of stops and find an overnight hotel for his entourage ahead of the Dublin meetings, according to Mr. Short.

Mr. Trump and family members stayed at their Doonbeg residence on official business recently, so the property had been fully vetted.

The president did not order Mr. Pence to stay at his property, according to Mr. Short.

“I don’t think it was a request, like a command,” he told reporters. “I think that it was a suggestion. … It’s like, ‘Well, you should stay at my place.’ “