There were many reasons advanced to justify the wooing of Donald Trump ten years ago.
The damage to wildlife on the site of his Aberdeenshire golf course would not be as bad as some feared. Most experts now think that the area has been damaged.
The economic benefits of the development would outweigh the environmental damage caused. Many promised benefits – a 450-bed hotel and 1500 homes - have yet to materialise.
But perhaps the most egregious argument was that Trump’s global brand would enhance northeast Scotland’s reputation. That certainly hasn't happened.
It is difficult to credit how far Trump has fallen from grace. He has comprehensively offended women, minorities, migrants and refugees.
In November Trump came under fire from the UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, for retweeting videos shared by the far right group, Britain First. The author’s account was subsequently deleted by Twitter.
May's accused Britain First of seeking “to divide communities through their use of hateful narratives, which peddle lies and stoke tensions". The British people overwhelmingly rejected the “prejudiced rhetoric of the far right”.
Britain First came to prominence in the UK after the murder of the pro-immigration Labour MP Jo Cox prior to the June 2016 Brexit referendum. Her killer, Thomas Mair, was heard shouting "Britain first" by witnesses.
Whatever the niceties of the legal planning process, Aberdeen councillors need to find a way of saying no - irreversibly, inescapably and without doubt - to Trump and his business interests having any further involvement in Scotland.
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