When signing a proclamation to honor Martin Luther King Jr., Donald Trump called on all Americans to honor the the late civil rights leader’s birthday “with acts of civic work and community service.” | Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images Trump spends Martin Luther King Jr. Day at golf course

President Donald Trump returned to his Florida golf course on Monday, appearing to disregard his own advice that people spend Martin Luther King Jr. Day performing acts of service for others.

Trump arrived at his golf course shortly after 9 a.m., and the White House did not respond to a request for comment about his activity. His public schedule is empty and he is scheduled to return to the White House Monday night.


When signing a proclamation to honor King on Friday, Trump called on all Americans to honor the the late civil rights leader’s birthday “with acts of civic work and community service.”

King’s nephew, Isaac Newton Farris Jr., hit the same theme at the White House event.

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“It’s not a day to hang out in the park or pull out the barbecue grill,” he said. “It’s a day to do something to help someone else, and that can be as simple as delivering someone’s trash or picking up the newspaper for that elderly person who can’t get to the end of the driveway.”

Vice President Mike Pence visited King’s Washington D.C. monument on Sunday to lay a wreath.

Past presidents have engaged in service activities to honor the holiday. Barack Obama, for example, was joined by his wife and aides at the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington during the 2015 holiday. George W. Bush visited the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library to mark the day in 2008.

Trump has spent recent days denying that he privately complained that the U.S. admitted too many people from “shithole” countries like Haiti, El Salvador and African countries and not enough from places like Norway.

“No, no, I’m not a racist,” Trump told reporters Sunday. “I am the least racist person you have ever interviewed.”