Corbyn red-faced at admission he asked for meeting with Trump and was rejected
JEREMY CORBYN’S public condemnation of Donald Trump unravelled last night after it emerged that he had asked the US President for a meeting but was turned down.
The Labour leader has been accused by his own MPS of handing Mr Trump a “PR victory” after his team was forced to admit to requesting the talks despite publicly denouncing the state visit.
In an embarrassing twist, Mr Trump yesterday revealed that he had rejected the invitation, describing Mr Corbyn as a “negative force” who had sniped from the sidelines rather than attempting to “do things correctly”.
The disclosure came only moments after Mr Corbyn spoke at a demonstration in Whitehall, where he delivered a broadside against Mr Trump’s presidency and his approach to climate change and immigration.
Calling on voters to stand up to racism, misogyny and religious hatred, Mr Corbyn added that far-right politicians across Europe and the US had “no answers” to the problems they face.
However, when asked about Mr Corbyn’s comments at a joint press conference with Theresa May yesterday, Mr Trump said: “I don’t know Jeremy Corbyn. Never met him. He wanted to meet today or tomorrow and I decided not to do that.
“I think he is, from where I come from, somewhat of a negative force. I think the people should look to do things correctly as opposed to criticise.
“I really don’t like critics as much as I like and respect people who get things done – so I decided not to meet.”
Confirming the president’s account, a spokesman for Mr Corbyn said that he was “ready to engage with the president on a range of issues”.
However, the apparent doublestandard was not lost on a number of Labour MPS, who challenged Mr Corbyn over his decision to attack Mr Trump publicly while at the same time seeking an audience behind the scenes.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph last night, one said: “This is the worst of all worlds: protesting outside to look good to his supporters, but privately seeking a meeting and handing a PR victory to Trump in the process. “Whether it’s losing the European elections to Nigel Farage or losing the propaganda war against Donald Trump, Jeremy Corbyn is helping the populist Right, not defeating it.”
The controversy risked undermining the multiple demonstrations held across the capital yesterday, billed as a Carnival of Resistance, which also failed to live up to expectations. While organisers had promised a turnout of 250,000, they later admitted only a third of that number had turned up, blaming a “wet working day”.
The mood around Westminster also turned sour when, shortly after Mr Corbyn’s speech, a group of activists were filmed attacking a Trump supporter in Parliament Square. One video showed the middle-aged man being pushed and doused with a milkshake.
Despite Mr Trump’s negative comments about Mr Corbyn, when asked by Piers Morgan in an interview for Good Morning Britain, if he could see himself doing a trade deal with the Labour leader, the president responded: “It’s always possible. Anything is possible.”