A Trump family wedding is set to unfold this Saturday on a private island in the Bahamas, and the father of the groom may be watching from 1,000 miles away.
Donald Trump Jr., 48, will marry Palm Beach socialite and model Bettina Anderson, 39, in what is expected to be an intimate ceremony attended by a small circle of close family and friends.
President Trump addressed reporters Wednesday in the Oval Office, where he was asked directly whether he planned to attend.
“He’d like me to go, but it’s going to be just a small little private affair, and I’m going to try and make it,” Trump said.
The president left no ambiguity about what stands between him and the ceremony.
“This is not good timing for me,” Trump told reporters. “Everything called Iran and other things.”
Still, Trump acknowledged the bind he finds himself in, whether he shows up or stays behind.
“That’s one I can’t win on. If I do attend, I get killed. If I don’t attend, I get killed,” he said, before wishing the couple well. “Hopefully they’re going to have a great marriage.”
The Bahamas venue marks a significant departure from what the couple had originally envisioned. Earlier plans called for a grand celebration, with a White House ceremony among the options under consideration.
Those plans were shelved. A source familiar with the couple’s thinking told Page Six the decision was driven by the realities of the current moment.
“They’re very aware that a lavish wedding at the White House while people are dying wouldn’t be well-received,” the source said.
The weekend carries added weight beyond the nuptials. On Wednesday, Vanessa Trump — Donald Jr.’s former wife and the mother of his five children — publicly disclosed a breast cancer diagnosis.
“I’ve recently been diagnosed with breast cancer,” Vanessa wrote on Instagram. “While this isn’t news anyone expects, I’m working closely with my medical team on a treatment plan.”
She also acknowledged receiving treatment ahead of the announcement. “I would like to thank my doctors for performing a procedure earlier this week on me,” she wrote.
Vanessa and Donald Jr. were married for 13 years, from 2005 to 2018. Together they have five children: Kai, 19; Donald, 17; Tristan, 14; Spencer, 13; and Chloe, 11. The former couple is reported to maintain a cordial relationship.
Anderson brings her own prominent pedigree to the marriage. A Palm Beach native, she is the daughter of philanthropist Inger Anderson and the late banker Harry Loy Anderson Jr.
The couple’s romance became public in 2024, shortly after Trump Jr.’s engagement to former Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle came to an end. By December, Trump Jr. had proposed to Anderson at Camp David.
Anderson’s bridal shower, hosted at Mar-a-Lago in April with an enchanted garden theme, drew an all-star Trump family guest list — Ivanka Trump, Lara Trump, Tiffany Trump, and Marla Maples were all in attendance.
Saturday’s ceremony will mark Trump Jr.’s second marriage and Anderson’s first.
