‘Trump tried to use the London Bridge attack to justify his misguided ban on travel to the States from six predominately Muslim countries’
THESE are testing times for Britain. After two monstrous terror attacks within the space of as many weeks, the issue of our safety has overtaken Brexit in what has become an important and unexpectedly close election.
The latest assault on our freedoms on Saturday night rightly provoked strong reactions from both Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn.
“Enough is enough,” said the Prime Minister, adding that there had been “far too much tolerance of extremism” in Britain.
“All communities must come together,” declared the Labour leader.
Politicians from across the board rightly said today’s election should go ahead and that the cowardly attacks could not be allowed to disrupt the democratic process.
Almost every leader offered genuine proposals rather than bombastic provocation – that was left to Donald Trump.
The US President appeared to be doing his best to ruin the ‘special relationship’ that exists between the US and Britain, when he took to Twitter as the victims still lay dying.
Even before expressing support for the British people, Trump tried to use the London Bridge attack to justify his misguided ban on travel to the States from six predominately Muslim countries.
Hours later he was fully off the rails.
As London Mayor Sadiq Khan reassured Londoners not to be alarmed about an increased police presence in the coming days, Trump lashed out.
“At least seven dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is ‘no reason to be alarmed!’” he tweeted.
What Khan actually said was not, as Trump suggested they should be nonchalant about terrorism, more that, with more bobbies on the beat, they remain stoic as Britain always has in the face of attack.
What rational head of state, let alone the supposed leader of the free world, chooses such a moment to attack the mayor of a city that has just been hit by terrorists?
Why you may wonder, would Trump do such a thing? Why take the Mayor’s words out of context in a way that changed their meaning?
Because last year Khan dared to criticise then-candidate Trump, saying that his “ignorant view of Islam could make both our countries less safe”. That’s why.
Fuelled by his simmering grudge, Saturday’s attack was clearly too good an opportunity for the President to miss.
His outburst came at a time when the President appears more concerned with others’ terror problems than his own.
At present, America’s domestic counterterrorism organisation, the FBI, has no director and the UK lacks a US ambassador.
Domestically the State, Defence and Homeland Security departments have dozens of positions unfilled while the Department of Justice has no attorneys.
Why? Because as Trump busies himself with other matters, he has failed to nominate people for 442 of 563 key executive branch roles in the federal government requiring Senate confirmation.
And while Trump gloats at friends and allies, he ignores such things as Monday’s mass shooting in Florida, which left five people dead at the hands of a disgruntled former colleague carrying the same kind of gun even suspected terrorists can get their hands on with no trouble at all.
ISIS is urging followers to do precisely that.
If Trump really wants to be a true leader, he’d do well to concentrate on how he plans to keep his own people safe from harm.
So, to those few who ask me to lay off Trump, I’ll say this: The day he starts acting Presidential, the day he refrains from using the blood of innocents for his own political gain, the day he begins acting like a leader rather than a billionaire bully, that will be the day I lay off.
You may be waiting some time.