Perhaps as expected, President Trump’s arrival in the United Kingdom has proven to be divisive.
MPs from a variety of political parties have shared their views on Trump’s historic second state visit, which has become the first time that a re-elected American president has been invited back in their second term.
Jack Rankin, Conservative MP for Windsor, said that Trump was very welcome in Windsor despite being “political marmite”.
Rankin said: “Donald Trump is political marmite, and it might not be the case that if Windsor were a US state it would award him our electoral college votes – but that isn’t the point.
“He is here as the president of the United States, an institution we respect, and at the invitation of his Majesty, the King as his guest: as such, he is very welcome in Windsor.
“The Castle, the town and the Guardsmen look splendid. The weather isn’t quite right, but the best of British is on display today.”
Amongst the critics were Zack Polanski and Sir Ed Davey, the respective leaders of the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats, as well as Sir Sadiq Khan, the Labour mayor of London.
Davey announced that he had turned down his invitation to the state banquet as he said that Trump’s appearance in the UK went against “British interests”.
Davey told Times Radio: “I felt that I wanted to go. I respect His Majesty and therefore I wanted to support him. But I really wrestled.
“This is a genuinely difficult decision because I normally want to go to the state banquets to support His Majesty and indeed the British interests. But I felt on deep reflection and consideration that the best way to reflect British interests and to get my message over via the media, via the government ministers was to take this stand.”
Polanski, who won the leadership contest for the Green Party earlier this month, is set to take to the streets of central London to give a speech to the anti-Trump rally being led by the Stop Trump Coalition.
Ahead of his speech, Polanski said: “Donald Trump comes to Britain seeking credibility and to whitewash his own complicity in the genocide unfolding in Gaza.
“While the vast majority unite against Trump and everything he stands for, there will be one man who wants us to welcome him with open arms: Nigel Farage.
“Farage pretends to be a man of the people , but he’s really just a man of the super rich. Like Trump he seeks power, influence and money over all else.
“Our country has a proud tradition of standing up for the underdog. Today, that means standing alongside every child in Gaza; with all those in detention camps on the borders of the United States and with each and every one of those growing up in poverty here in Britain. And standing up to the bully Donald Trump and his poodle, Nigel Farage.”
Also causing controversy was Sir Sadiq Khan, the Labour mayor of London, who wrote in an article for the Guardian this morning that Trump was a “divisive” figure who “fanned the flames” of far right politics around the world.
Khan’s comments are likely to cause headaches for Downing Street, who are hoping to reap the political benefits of the president’s visit after a turbulent return from the summer recess.
He has also fallen out of favour with the President in the past. During his visit to Scotland in July, Trump called Khan a “nasty person” and said he was doing “a terrible job” as mayor.
Khan wrote: “President Donald Trump and his coterie have perhaps done the most to fan the flames of divisive, far-right politics around the world in recent years.
“When he came to the UK on his first state visit, I highlighted how the president had deliberately used xenophobia, racism and ‘otherness’ as an electoral tactic, introducing a travel ban on a number of Muslim-majority countries and praising white nationalists in Charlottesville, Virginia.
“Six years later, the tactics we see from today’s White House seem no different. Scapegoating minorities, illegally deporting US citizens, deploying the military to the streets of diverse cities. These actions aren’t just inconsistent with Western values – they’re straight out of the autocrat’s playbook.”
Unexpectedly, there has been no official line from Reform UK, despite Nigel Farage’s close relationship with the American president.
Farage has visited the US almost ten times since being elected as the Reform UK MP for Clacton. Earlier this month, Farage flew to the United States to meet with Trump, where he attracted criticism for claiming that Britain had become “like North Korea” in its approach to free speech.
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