There was embarrassment for Nigel Farage as his idol Donald Trump gave him the cold shoulder after he’d flown all the way to Mar-a-Lago.
Over the weekend, the Reform UK leader flew 4,500 miles across the Atlantic to try and convince President Trump to pull the plug on the UK’s deal with the Chagos Islands.
Except, Farage never got to meet Trump during the visit.
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According to a report in the Financial Times, Farage had been invited to Mar-a-Lago by a member of the club, and hadn’t actually received a formal invite to meet Trump.
Despite this, the publication reports that he still hoped to “catch Trump for a conversation” as the president was set to travel to Mara-a-Lago that day.
However, Trump changed his itinerary and chose to stay in Doral instead, an hour’s drive from Mar-a-Lago, leaving Farage in Mar-a-Lago twiddling his thumbs.
This means Liz Truss has managed to secure a face-to-face meeting with Trump more recently than Farage.
Perhaps the Clacton MP doesn’t have the ‘special relationship’ with the Republican that he thinks he does…
Needless to say, Farage’s latest round of jet-setting caused some murmurs of discontent. Labour MP Calvin Bailey accused Nigel Farage of ‘lobbying against UK interests’ this weekend, questioning his sense of patriotism in the process.
“We are talking about our collective national security. The person who is always against these things is Nigel Farage. He will be lobbying against our national interest while he is at Mar-A-Lago, talking down the deals we have made, and it is is deeply unpatriotic.” | Calvin Bailey
Always sharp with the soundbites, Ed Davey weighed in with his take on the matter. The Liberal Democrat leader blasted Mr. Farage for ‘sucking up’ to Donald Trump, and reminded the electorate that the ongoing war with Iran is likely to have terrible consequences here in the UK.
“I see that Nigel Farage is off to Mar-a-Lago to talk down the United Kingdom and suck up to Donald Trump. There’s nothing patriotic about cheering on a foreign leader whose illegal war is sending British families’ energy bills through the roof.” | Ed Davey