President Donald Trump told British Prime Minister he doesn’t want to go to Britain if he is set to be met by large-scale protests during his visit. Trump passed along the message during a phone call that took place in recent weeks, according to the Guardian, which cites an unnamed source who was reportedly in the room during the conversation between the two leaders.
The phone call would at least partly explain why there has been little information about the visit after May extended an invitation from the queen to Trump and his wife seven days after his inauguration. But Downing Street denies there has been any official change in plans. “We aren’t going to comment on speculation about the contents of private phone conversations,” a spokeswoman for the prime minister said. “The queen extended an invitation to President Trump to visit the U.K., and there is no change to those plans.”
Word of the supposedly delayed visit comes shortly after Trump angered much of Britain when he tweeted out criticism of London Mayor Sadiq Khan after the terrorist attack on and around London Bridge that killed eight people. Even the acting U.S. ambassador to the U.K., Lewis Lukens, seemed to take issue with the president and publicly praised Khan for his leadership after the attack. Trump wants Woody Johnson, the owner of the New York Jets, to take over the ambassadorship in London but has yet to formally nominate him.
Considering the controversy, it’s little wonder that many were quick to celebrate word of the canceled trip. One of those was Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who wrote on Twitter that the “cancellation” is “welcome,” particularly after the Khan criticism and the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.
