There was a genuine sense of trepidation ahead of Wednesday’s meeting, though for years the St Patrick’s Day visit of the Taoiseach to the White House was traditionally little more than a photo opportunity.

Mr Trump’s unpredictable moods had many observers concerned, and the argument that broke out between Mr Trump, his vice-president JD Vance, and Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy live on television in the White House recently fuelled those concerns.

The relatively low-key encounter between Mr Martin and Mr Trump will, therefore, come as a relief in many quarters, with the US president quite complimentary about his visitor.

However, when asked if Ireland was taking advantage of the US, Mr Trump said: “Of course they are... The United States of America is going to take back a lot of what was stolen from it by other countries.”

He also stated that Ireland “has got the entire US pharmaceutical industry in its grasps” and that Apple had “been treated very badly” in its EU tax case.

Given our dependence on foreign direct investment, and on American companies in particular, this does not bode well for Ireland going forward.

The Taoiseach stressed that the Ireland-US relationship is a “two-way street”, and Mr Trump acknowledged that he loves Ireland — “I’ve been there many times as you know, and we don’t want to do anything to hurt Ireland. But we do want fairness and he [Mr Martin] understands”.

That love clearly does not include a special dispensation when it comes to American companies.

Mr Trump has shown a tendency to change direction in the past, but it would be a serious error to depend on inconsistency as an ally in this matter. 

Wednesday’s warnings could not have been clearer, and we need to prepare accordingly.

Hackman's death highlights concerns for carers

When news of Gene Hackman’s passing broke last week there was sadness at the death of a popular actor, but that sadness was tempered with the knowledge that Hackman had lived to the age of 95 and enjoyed a full and rewarding life.

Since then, however, disturbing details have emerged about the circumstances of Hackman’s death at his home in Santa Fe.

Investigators have determined that it is likely that the actor’s wife, Betsy Arakawa, predeceased him due to hantavirus. 

She was Hackman’s primary carer and it is presumed that the actor, who was suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s disease, was unable to fend for himself alone and died days later.

This is clearly a nightmarish end for anyone, and the circumstances raise a general question about the pressures on carers everywhere, Ireland included.

The burden placed on family members who must care for relatives is a vital but often unacknowledged part of our own health system; if those people did not provide this vital service in thousands of homes all over the country it simply could not be replaced by the health services.

In one sense, it is an indictment of our society that it should take the death of a celebrity to turn the spotlight on this issue, but that is the world we live in. 

If the Hackman case focuses attention on carers — on the challenges they face, and on ways to help them — then the actor’s tragic end may aid others in the future.