Election Interference? Trump Wades Into British Politics

U.S. President Donald Trump waded into British politics Thursday, saying Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn would be “so bad” for the country and describing Prime Minister Boris Johnson as “the exact right guy for the times.”

The comments came on the same day the U.S. House approved rules for conducting a public impeachment inquiry and followed this week’s vote in Parliament to call elections for Dec. 12. Johnson is hoping to secure a majority that would guarantee passage of the deal he worked out for the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union. The campaign officially begins next week.

Corbyn accused Trump of trying to interfere in the election to get Johnson re-elected.

“Corbyn would be so bad for your country. He’d be so bad. He’d take you in such a bad way. He’d take you to such bad places,” Trump said on an LBC radio show hosted by Nigel Farage, the Brexit party leader and former leader of the far-right UK Independence Party.

Trump, who is highly unpopular in Britain, lauded Johnson.

“I think he’s the exact right guy for the times,” Trump said, urging Johnson to team up with Farage to form an “unstoppable force.” Farage reportedly is considering hundreds of Brexit party candidates so as not to split the pro-Brexit vote in some districts.

Many members of Farage’s Brexit party, however, oppose Johnson’s deal, calling it a Brexit “in name only.” They want a sharper divorce from the EU.

Corbyn has said Johnson’s Brexit deal would lead to a “toxic Trump trade deal,” opening Britain up to U.S. corporations that could lead to a takeover of the National Health Service. He also has said it could open British markets to U.S. agricultural products that currently are banned by the EU.

The campaign itself promises to be ugly. Numerous lawmakers have faced death threats over their positions on Brexit. A recent survey by Cardiff University indicated pro-Brexit voters think violence toward lawmakers is a “price worth paying” to get Brexit approved. Those opposed to Brexit said injuries during protests are acceptable if Brexit is blocked.