America’s ambassador to the UK has said he thinks dealing with Donald Trump’s inflammatory tweets is the “easiest part” of his job - despite the free-wheeling President prompting multiple international crises via social media.
In an interview with Channel 4 News ahead of the President’s visit to the UK, Woody Johnson was asked if he felt Trump’s approach to politics made his job more difficult.
The ambassador responded: “No. In a word.
“Actually the easiest part of my job is trying to explain Donald Trump and what he does in his Tweets.”
Trump has had a series of fall-outs with leading British politicians since taking office, notably engaging in a spat with Theresa May after he retweeted anti-Muslim videos posted online by a British far-right group.
Trump responded to criticism from the PM by telling her to focus on “destructive radical Islamic terrorism” in the UK, rather than on him.
After a bomb partially exploded at Parsons Green in London in September 2017, Trump tweeted: “Another attack in London by a loser terrorist. These are sick and demented people who were in the sights of Scotland Yard. Must be proactive!”
The Metropolitan Police said the US president’s comments – which did not
correspond with any information released by the UK authorities – were
“unhelpful” and “pure speculation”.
The US President also used Twitter to cancel a visit to London in the face of planned protests.
Trump insisted he wouldn’t visit because he did not want to cut the ribbon on the new US embassy, tweeting that the building’s relocation was a “bad deal”.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said Trump “got the message” about his popularity in the UK.
In the wake of the deadly attack on London Bridge and Borough Market, Trump was accused of manipulating the London mayor’s statement after he said there was “no reason to be alarmed” by an increased police presence in the capital over the following days.
In a statement made on Twitter, Trump said: “Pathetic excuse by London Mayor Sadiq Khan who had to think fast on his “no reason to be alarmed” statement. MSM is working hard to sell it!”
In the interview with Johnson, an old friend of the president, the ambassador said the British public will warm to Trump the more they see “what he does” rather than what he says.
Johnson said: “As the British public gets to see and gets to know ... not just how he does it but what he does ... what he’s accomplished ... I think most people would say ‘yeah, it’s pretty good’.”