Donald Trump will skip his son’s Bahamas wedding to spend the weekend at New Jersey golf club after he previously refused to RSVP to the event due to ‘bad timing’
12:29 ET, 22 May 2026Updated 15:28 ET, 22 May 2026
Donald Trump will not be attending his son’s wedding this weekend(Image: Getty)
Donald Trump is set to miss his eldest son’s wedding this weekend in the Bahamas, with the president opting to spend the weekend on the golf course.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said he had hoped to attend the private ceremony between Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Anderson, but admitted the timing was “not good” due to ongoing geopolitical pressures, including the situation involving Iran.
“Uh, he’d like me to go, but it’s going to be just a small little private affair,” said Trump. He also joked that he would be “killed by the fake news” if he attended the wedding, but added that he would face the same criticism if he skipped it. It comes after Trump refused to RSVP to Donald Jr’s wedding for a bizarre reason.
READ MORE: World Cup tickets selling for $6 as Donald Trump verdict ringing trueREAD MORE: Bill Belichick provides blunt four-word response to Hall of Fame snub
“That’s one I can’t win on,” Trump said in the Oval Office when asked if he planned to attend his eldest son’s wedding. “If I do attend, I get killed. If I don’t attend, I get killed by the fake news, of course.”
Trump’s weekend schedule also indicates the president will remain in the United States, spending time in “executive time” in Bedminster, New Jersey, where he is expected to be based primarily at his golf club.
Meanwhile, the wedding between Trump Jr. and Anderson is reported to be an intimate affair in the Bahamas, with fewer than 50 guests in attendance, according to sources.
Part of the reason for Trump’s decision not to attend was reportedly to help keep the ceremony as private and low-key as possible, according to reports.
Donald Trump will spend the weekend on the golf course(Image: Getty Images)
Despite the political pressure, Trump has reportedly spent at least five weekends since the start of the war at his Mar-a-Lago resort and at least three at his Doral golf club in Florida.
On several of those trips, the president is said to have played golf, further intensifying scrutiny of how he has balanced domestic concerns with personal time away from Washington.
Trump Jr.’s upcoming wedding to Anderson will mark his second marriage and third engagement. The president’s eldest son was previously married to Vanessa Trump, with whom he shares five children, and was also engaged to Kimberly Guilfoyle, who now serves as Ambassador to Greece. Guilfoyle, formerly married to California Governor Gavin Newsom, was engaged to Trump Jr. from 2020 until 2024.
READ MORE: Tom Brady aims brutal swipe at Texas Tech in Super Bowl address to college studentsREAD MORE: Vanessa Trump issued Tiger Woods ultimatum after DUI arrest before breast cancer diagnosis
Trump Jr. began dating Anderson in 2024, with the couple getting engaged in December 2025. The engagement was publicly announced by the president during a White House holiday party, when he confirmed his son’s plans to marry Anderson.
Trump referred to Anderson as “a person I’ve known for a long time” while discussing the upcoming marriage on Thursday. “Hopefully they’re going to have a great marriage,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, the daughter of Donald Trump’s doctor made a bombshell claim about his health.