DONALD Trump has intervened in the Scottish independence debate in a bizarre rant.
Speaking with comedian Andrew Schulz on his Flagrant podcast earlier this month, the US presidential candidate said he hopes the UK “always stays together”.
The comment came after the former US president and Schulz discussed both having Scottish mothers.
Trump's mother Mary Anne MacLeod was born in the small village of Tong on the Isle of Lewis before making the move stateside.
“My mother was great. She was a Stornoway,” he said. “The Hebrides. That’s, you know, that’s really serious Scottish.”
Trump – who also owns several golf courses and hotels in Scotland – shared that she loved the late Queen Elizabeth, to which Schulz then replied that some of his family “hate the English”.
“No, I know. There’s some history,” Trump responded (below).
He then revealed his stance on independence, adding: “You know, they tried to break up Scotland from the rest of the empire, so to speak.
“And it made it by about like a half a point. They kept it together. So I hope it stays together. I hope it always stays together.”
Trump then appeared to reference the formation of the UK.
“But England, as they say, because it used to be England, but England never could. They just, and they were bigger and they had more people. They could never finish it off by capturing Scotland. So it’s really sort of,” Trump said.
Schulz then interrupted: “They ended up having to marry together."
Trump agreed: “They married. They became sort of subsidiaries. Right?”
Earlier in the podcast, Trump also spoke about his mother in more depth and Braveheart, the 1995 historical epic directed by and starring Mel Gibson.
He then started speaking about Braveheart, which he said – after watching just four minutes – “may be the greatest movie I’ve ever seen”.
The podcast host then referenced Hadrian’s wall and the failure of Roman military campaigns in what is now Scotland.
Trump responded: “The Scottish people, they’re tough people. They’re good people. Actually, they’re very great people. But they’re good fighters.”
His comments come as the 2024 US presidential election nears its end, with all eyes on Trump and Vice-President Kamala Harris.
The race between the Republican and Democratic nominees is close, with both being in with a good chance of being elected when Americans go to the polls Tuesday next week.
