SC Gov. McMaster’s office mum on reported Trump visit

There is no hint in Gov. Henry McMaster’s weekly schedule that new President Donald Trump will be in Charleston Friday.

McMaster’s schedule for the week, released Monday, lists no activities Friday.

However, the new S.C. governor — and First Lady Peggy McMaster — will be in Charleston Thursday evening to attend the preview of the 35th annual Southeastern Wildlife Exposition.

Trump reportedly will be in North Charleston Friday for the unveiling of the stretched version of the Boeing 787 airplane.

McMaster press secretary Brian Symmes directed The State to Boeing, declining to comment when asked whether the White House has reached out to the governor’s office regarding a trip to South Carolina.

Boeing officials directed inquiries Monday to the White House.

A White House spokesperson said in an email the trip “is not confirmed.”

However, as a security precaution, presidential trips often are not confirmed until shortly before they occur.

Republican Trump’s presence in red-state South Carolina wouldn’t be surprising.

While lieutenant governor, McMaster was the first statewide elected official to endorse the bombastic billionaire’s unlikely presidential bid.

And Trump cleared the way for McMaster, R-Richland, to become governor by naming previous Gov. Nikki Haley as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

Trump’s visit to Boeing also would be timely.

Last week, Trump expressed support for the U.S. Export-Import Bank, which helps Boeing sell planes overseas, according to Senate Democrats who met with the president.

His trip also would follow Wednesday’s scheduled unionization vote for Boeing’s North Charleston production employees.

Trump has had a somewhat rocky relationship with Boeing.

On the campaign trail, he predicted the airplane maker would move jobs from the United States to China.

And, after taking office, he ripped Boeing for what he said was the excessive cost of two new Boeing 747s, which will serve as Air Force 1, that the company is building for the president.

But there is a practical reason for Trump to be in Charleston Friday.

Charleston International Airport is almost exactly half way between the White House in Washington, D.C., and Trump’s new self-proclaimed winter White House, at his Mar a Largo resort in Florida.

This story was originally published February 13, 2017 at 6:16 PM with the headline "SC Gov. McMaster’s office mum on reported Trump visit."