Before President Donald Trump’s plane had even touched down in the United Kingdom for his historic state visit, planned to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, London Mayor Sadiq Khan was already on the offensive, comparing Trump to 20th century dictators and chastising the British government for rolling out the red carpet for its top ally.
When he finally landed in London Monday, Trump fired back, calling Khan a “stone cold loser” in a tweet.
Khan began his campaign against Trump over the weekend, first authorizing a series of massive protests slated to take place in London, and then penning an op-ed in The Guardian, warning leaders that Trump’s visit will be one they would come to regret.
“Donald Trump is just one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat,” Khan wrote, under the headline, “It’s un-British to roll out the red carpet for Donald Trump.”
He then accused Trump of being part of the “global rise of the far right,” and accused the American president of stripping his countrymen of rights and liberties, though his essay was light on any actual examples. Instead, Khan simply opined that Trump has destroyed “our hard-won rights and freedoms and the values that have defined our liberal, democratic societies for more than seventy years.”
Khan, of course, has been a crusader for speech codes and weapons bans, infringing on two “rights and freedoms” that are constitutionally protected in the United States.
He went on to allude to a connection between Donald Trump and “20th century fascists,” presumably including Adolf Hitler, apparently implying that the president, in the U.K. to celebrate the liberation of the western world from the Nazi threat, is himself the modern iteration of it.
“Viktor Orbán in Hungary, Matteo Salvini in Italy, Marine Le Pen in France and Nigel Farage here in the UK are using the same divisive tropes of the fascists of the 20th century to garner support, but are using new sinister methods to deliver their message,” Khan whined.
The White House issued no response to Khan’s essay, but Monday morning, as he landed in the U.K., the president himself tweeted that Khan was little more than a “stone cold loser,” echoing criticism Trump has leveled at the London mayor following a handful of terrorist attacks.
.@SadiqKhan, who by all accounts has done a terrible job as Mayor of London, has been foolishly “nasty” to the visiting President of the United States, by far the most important ally of the United Kingdom. He is a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 3, 2019
“.@SadiqKhan, who by all accounts has done a terrible job as Mayor of London, has been foolishly “nasty” to the visiting President of the United States, by far the most important ally of the United Kingdom. He is a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me……,” Trump tweeted.
Trump also took a potshot at Khan’s height and tenor, comparing him to New York mayor and flailing 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, Bill de Blasio.
….Kahn reminds me very much of our very dumb and incompetent Mayor of NYC, de Blasio, who has also done a terrible job – only half his height. In any event, I look forward to being a great friend to the United Kingdom, and am looking very much forward to my visit. Landing now!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 3, 2019
“….Kahn reminds me very much of our very dumb and incompetent Mayor of NYC, de Blasio, who has also done a terrible job – only half his height. In any event, I look forward to being a great friend to the United Kingdom, and am looking very much forward to my visit. Landing now!” he continued.
Monday morning, Khan hit the president again, appearing in a video for Elle magazine U.K., criticizing the American president’s lack of “feminist” values.
The White House has reportedly been trying to keep Trump’s focus on more important matters, including the D-Day celebrations and the ongoing issues with Brexit in the U.K., as well as an impending election. Khan has reportedly been chastized by members of his own government for quarreling with the American president, who, whether he likes it or not, represents one of the U.K.’s top allies.