--- title: Trump Says He Met With the President of the Virgin Islands description: "I met with the president of the Virgin Islands," Donald Trump. But he's the President of the U.S. territory canonical: https://time.com/4982458/donald-trump-president-virgin-islands/ author: Mahita Gajanan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-10-13T22:00:22.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T17:51:44.246Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump Says He Met With the President of the Virgin Islands. But That's Him og:description: He said he met with the Virgin Islands 'president' og:url: https://time.com/4982458/donald-trump-president-virgin-islands/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt55b0a245425d39f5/6988e1f286f68e4b3e6e6d99/trump-virgin-islands-president.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: President Trump, Conservative Leaders Address Value Voters Summit og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump Says He Met With the President of the Virgin Islands. But That's Him twitter:description: He said he met with the Virgin Islands 'president' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt55b0a245425d39f5/6988e1f286f68e4b3e6e6d99/trump-virgin-islands-president.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Trump Says He Met With the President of the Virgin Islands. But That's Him > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=da98c383-f68f-469d-b677-9e952e757dff&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Oct 13, 2017 10:00 PM UTC  U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the annual Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit at the Omni Shorham Hotel on October 13, 2017 in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the annual Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit at the Omni Shorham Hotel on October 13, 2017 in Washington, DC. Mark Wilson—Getty Images by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Oct 13, 2017 10:00 PM UTC President Trump appeared to forget that the [U.S. Virgin Islands](http://time.com/money/4621621/virgin-islands-pay-tourists/) falls under his jurisdiction during a speech Friday. “I met with the president of the Virgin Islands,” Trump said while speaking about a spate of [natural disasters](http://time.com/4981221/peanuts-charles-schultz-california-wildfires/) that have hit the U.S. and its territories in recent weeks at the annual Values Voter Summit. Trump could not have spoken to the president of the Virgin Islands because the president is Trump himself, since it’s a U.S. territory. It appears Trump was referring to Kenneth Mapp, the governor of the Virgin Islands, whom the president met with on Oct. 3. Trump is the first sitting president to speak before the Values Voter Summit, a gathering of Christian conservatives and said he would be there for all affected U.S. citizens, who he insisted were “healing.” “They’re all healing. Their states and territories are healing and they’re healing rapidly,” he said. “In the wake of the terrible tragedies of the past several weeks, the American people have responded with goodness and generosity and bravery.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4982458/donald-trump-president-virgin-islands/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4982458/donald-trump-president-virgin-islands/"},"headline":"Trump Says He Met With the President of the Virgin Islands. 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