Report: Donald Trump Urged Woody Johnson to Bring British Open to His Resort

President Donald Trump reportedly wanted to steer the British Open golf tournament to his Trump Turnberry golf resort in Scotland, and in an effort to do so, he reportedly tried to get the United States' ambassador to Great Britain, Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson IV, to advocate for Turnberry in his dealings with the British government. 

According to a report from Mark Landler, Lara Jakes and Maggie Haberman of the New York Times, Johnson revealed to "multiple colleagues in February 2018" that Trump was pushing him to convince the British government that Turnberry should host. 

And Johnson reportedly played ball:

"The ambassador's deputy, Lewis A. Lukens, advised him not to do it, warning that it would be an unethical use of the presidency for private gain, these people said. But Mr. Johnson apparently felt pressured to try. A few weeks later, he raised the idea of Turnberry playing host to the Open with the secretary of state for Scotland, David Mundell."

It's unclear if the British government would have had much say in the matter considering the tournament is run by the R&A golf association, which picks the courses. 

The British government has denied that Johnson made any requests to Mundell, and Mundell said last week it would be "inappropriate" to reveal his conversations with Johnson, per the New York Times report. 

Lukens, meanwhile, emailed the State Department about the situation and was later forced out of his position by Johnson before the end of his term. The White House, State Department and Johnson all declined to comment for the New York Times report. 

"It is diplomatic malpractice because once you do that, you put yourself in a compromised position," former special counsel for ethics under President Barack Obama and former ambassador to the Czech Republic, Norman L. Eisen, told the New York Times regarding the report. "They can always say, 'Remember that time when you made that suggestion.' No experienced diplomat would do that."

Johnson, 73, is also the owner of the New York Jets along with his brother, Christopher Johnson, who is running the daily operations while Woody Johnson serves as an ambassador. Woody Johnson bought the Jets in January 2000. 

Woody Johnson endorsed Trump in 2016 and helped him fundraise for his campaign. He was also a donor to Trump's campaign.