By CurtisStone (Peoples Daily Online)16:58, July 11, 2019
Kim Darroch, the British ambassador to the US, has announced his resignation days after leaked cables cast US President Donald Trump in an unflattering light. The announcement was reported by multiple outlets.
British Prime Minister Theresa May called it “a matter of deep regret.”
The leaked cables from the ambassador were exposed by the Daily Mail newspaper, who described Trump as “inept,” “insecure,” and “incompetent” in a series of memos. The cables also warned London that the White House was “uniquely dysfunctional” and that Trump’s career could end in “disgrace.”
These humiliating remarks quickly spread to Trump’s ears and the American president on Monday posted a message on his social media account to announce his displeasure with Darroch and the UK government in general.
Trump said Darroch “is not liked or well-thought of within the US” and that “we will no longer deal with him.” The US president also called the ambassador “wacky” and a “very stupid guy.”
“I don’t know the Ambassador but have been told he is a pompous fool,” Trump said.
Despite having the full support of Prime Minister May, the British ambassador to the US announced his resignation from the post on Wednesday.
Now, some in the UK are saying that Trump “took the bait” and are posting allegations that the leak was “deliberate” in order to drive Darroch away for revealing the true nature of the Trump administration.
“It seems the deliberate leaking of Kim Darroch’s email was aimed at undermining him, so the new unelected Tory PM can appoint a Trumpian patsy to Washington,” Ben Bradshaw, the Member of Parliament for Exeter, wrote on social media.
Some have even suggested that the “coup” against Darroch is part of a larger battle between Brexit factions. Leave.EU, a political group that supports the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, suggested on July 7 that Darroch needs to go.
“Britain’s anti-Brexit ambassador to the US is what Donald Trump would call a “bad hombre,” the group wrote, adding: “He needs to be banished from Washington and replaced by a favorite of the President.”
How the UK ambassador’s remarks became public is still unknown and might never be known, but what is interesting from this event is that it shows the irony of free speech in America and the lengths to which the US government will go to attack its critics. The UK ambassador gave his opinion on the political situation in the US and the assessments were intended to be secret. However, the US administration is free to attack Darroch and to drive him out of the country.
What this all shows is that the current administration wants to be “boss of the world,” and that the US government will bully its way to the top and even throw its closest allies under the bus for power. This is not leadership; it is hegemonic behavior.
Related:
Resignation of UK ambassador shows increasing rift and distrust between US and its allies: experts