All posts tagged "United Kingdom"

Andy Burnham, the United Kingdom's likely prime minister-in-waiting, turned down an invite from President Donald Trump for the upcoming 250th anniversary of American independence, Politico reported on Monday.

A spokesperson for Burnham told Politico that he won't attend the U.S. embassy's "Great American Jubilee" at U.S. Ambassador Warren Stephens’ official residence in Regent’s Park on Tuesday due to a "scheduling clash." The swanky celebration is expected to draw dignitaries, military brass and business leaders, and will feature a performance from country music superstar Tim McGraw.

"Invitations have been sent to every major party leader," according to Politico. "Previous attendees include former Prime Minister Liz Truss, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and outgoing U.K. PM Keir Starmer, who attended in 2023 before he entered office."...

The British government published fresh messages and emails connected to Peter Mandelson's appointment as U.S. ambassador under Prime Minister Keir Starmer amid knowledge of the now former envoy's connection to late financier and convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to Politico.

Starmer, who has faced multiple political crises in his administration, had promised to release the files related to Mandelson and his appointment to the ambassador role after documents revealed that Mandelson had corresponded with Epstein years after he was convicted, Politico reported.

"The second tranche of documents includes extensive caches of emails, text messages, and WhatsApp logs passing between government officials, ministers, and special advisers concerning Mandelson's time in the role — and direct correspondence with the Labour grandee himself," according to Politico....

President Donald Trump's administration has attempted to shift the consequences of the Iran war to an ally, a report has found.

Trump's team caused a fallout in Bahrain, which has undermined support for the United States. But internal documents shared by Politico show the admin has tried to pin the blame for the fallout on the United Kingdom. Nahal Toosi wrote, "Bahrain’s government is facing questions about whether the U.S. abandoned it to fend for itself against Iranian drones and missiles.

"Bahrain and the U.S. are stalwart allies, and the Middle Eastern country hosts an American military base that serves as headquarters for the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet....

Foreign leaders seeking to cope with Donald Trump should not shower the U.S. president with flattery and gold gifts, a former British defense secretary said: they should read a near-forgotten 1991 book that describes Trump as a “cocksure boor who pays precious little attention to detail” and a “a lad who literally grew too big for his britches.”

“You only have to meet people, do the job, read the room to realize that sucking up to Donald Trump, giving him gold watches from Switzerland, doesn't work,” said Sir Ben Wallace, British defense secretary from 2019 to 2023, referring to a common tactic among world leaders regarding the U.S. president.

“There's an amazing book called Trumped! written in 1991 by one of his casino bosses from Atlantic City. It's one of the best reads you can read, because it's not written [as] a sort of kiss-and-tell, ‘I knew the president.’ ...

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) got into a screaming match with controversial UK right-winger Nigel Farage during a presentation about free speech, Politico reported.

Raskin was in London as part of a bipartisan congressional delegation led by House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) to discuss the free speech implications of the UK's new Online Safety Act. Republican lawmakers argue the law "violates free speech and unfairly targets U.S. tech companies," according to the report.

In an interview with Politico, Raskin said he had begun talking about the history of free speech in the United States when he brought up "current threats posed by President Donald Trump."...