President Donald Trump has put forward an unusual plan: convert one of his own golf properties in Florida into an official presidential retreat, a place where he and future commanders in chief could unwind on the greens in relative seclusion. He described the concept as "sort of a Camp David," invoking the name of the wooded Maryland compound that has served as the presidency's traditional escape hatch for decades.
Trump disclosed the idea on Wednesday during an unrelated event in the Oval Office, speaking to reporters in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., about a property he clearly knows well. According to the president, the retreat would give future presidents a spot for quiet weekends away from the White House, and he argued that the site already possesses much of the security infrastructure needed to host presidents and visiting world leaders.
"It's a great idea, and it'll be used a lot," Trump said, adding that the concept had been suggested to him by the United States Secret Service. "It seems that all presidents play golf." The remark was characteristic of Trump, an avid golfer who has spent a significant portion of his presidency at properties he owns, most notably his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach.
The specific property under consideration sits on Trump's private golf course in West Palm Beach, a short drive from Mar-a-Lago. In pitching the plan, Trump rattled off a list of practical advantages: the site is close to an airport, it is set back from residential neighborhoods, and it lacks the tall buildings that security planners generally treat as threats to a protected venue.
The proposal has already been submitted to local officials for review, suggesting the planning has moved beyond the stage of casual musing. If approved, the retreat would represent a rare arrangement in modern American governance — an official facility of the presidency located on land personally owned by the sitting president, and one that would continue to serve its purpose long after he leaves office.
That is precisely the dimension that makes the plan contentious. Establishing a Camp David-style compound on a Trump property would effectively commingle the presidency with Trump's business ventures beyond his time in office, creating a situation in which the office itself lends ongoing value to a private asset. The arrangement would be the latest example of Trump seeking ways to leave a tangible imprint on the presidency, part of a broader pattern of construction ambitions that have drawn attention during his second term.
Camp David, by contrast, has stood as a nonpartisan, government-owned fixture since the mid-20th century. Presidents from both parties have used the Maryland retreat for summits, family weekends, and diplomatic sessions far from the press corps. A successor to that model built on private land raises questions about who controls access, who pays for upkeep, and what happens to the arrangement after the current occupant leaves the White House.
Trump's own history with the West Palm Beach area adds another layer of context he did not mention. The golf course was the site of an unsuccessful attempt on his life in 2024, when a gunman was positioned near the perimeter of the property. Trump did not raise that episode while extolling the site's security credentials on Wednesday.
For supporters, the pitch will sound pragmatic: the property already works, it is close to transportation, and it would spare taxpayers the expense of building something new. For critics, the optics of a president converting his own golf course into a permanent seat of presidential leisure will reinforce concerns about the boundaries between public office and private profit.
The proposal also arrives amid continued scrutiny of how Trump uses his properties as venues for official business. Events held at golf clubs he owns blur the line between governance and promotion, and a formally designated retreat would institutionalize that blur rather than merely exemplify it.
Local officials in West Palm Beach now face the review of Trump's submission, a process that will likely encompass zoning, land use, and the practical requirements of securing a site for presidential visitors. Whatever they decide, the plan ensures that the question of where presidents relax — and who profits from it — will remain part of the national conversation.
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