Boris Johnson Is Embarrassed by Donald Trump
The British leader, like his French and German counterparts, should be far braver about defending democracy against authoritarians.
Friends in low places.
Photographer: Karwai Tang/WireImageSome whirlwind romances you regret for many years. Isolated from its former European partners as Brexit approached, the U.K. looked for succor from the U.S. Two Conservative prime ministers in succession — Theresa May and Boris Johnson — tried to woo the White House in search of a revived Atlanticism and a fat trade deal. Did Johnson go too far in courting President Donald Trump?
Johnson is often compared to Trump, especially in the liberal U.S. media, which sees one blond political buffoon with a salty turn of phrase as being pretty much like another. And yet, the two men’s characters are very different. Britain’s prime minister is a hopeless optimist who dislikes giving friends, colleagues and voters any bad news, and who tends toward a Pollyannaish view that things will turn out alright. Trump’s vision of the world is unremittingly dark. He sees chaos, gloom and betrayal everywhere.