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LONDON – One day before the arrival of President Donald Trump, the leaders of the European populist movement discreetly ranged themselves in a five-star hotel in the Mayfair district of London, without being noticed by summer tourists enjoying their cream.
A French right-wing politician and boyfriend of the French populist rifleman Marine Le Pen, walked through the lobby of a conference room tucked behind the restaurant serving tea in the afternoon. Nigel Farage, the right-wing British politician and Brexit mastermind, that local tabloids say he is "forbidden" by his government to meet President Donald Trump during his visit.
Continuation of the sequel
Ben Harris-Quinney, President of a leading conservative London think tank, lingering on the janitorial stand while he was discussing ways in which Trump's British fans could offer him a warm welcome in the midst of planned protests and a gigantic Trump inflatable baby to fly over the city. "We are trying to tell the story that there is a strong support well," Harris-Quinney said.
They all came to see Steve Trump's former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, who had set up a war room. sorts in a conference room of the hotel to confer and conspire with the leaders of the European populist movement. Bannon's goal, he said in a brief interview between meetings, was to help "contextualize Trump" for a European audience that hates him and a soap opera culture that he says does not shake the American president.
This reminds us that the European version of Trumpism is flourishing – from England to France via Italy – even though Trump himself may not do much when He will arrive Thursday night.
Informal meetings were going on quietly before a presidential visit that seems to be overshadowed by dramas even bigger than an unpredictable Donald Trump. The country was obsessed by the fate of its World Cup football team, and will dissect and mourn Wednesday's loss to Croatia in a semi-final.
Trump will also arrive amidst a political crisis over the terms of the Brexit in England – the nickname of the 2016 referendum forcing his withdrawal from the EU – that could bring down the government of Prime Minister Theresa May
He keeps a profile lower than the usual presidents. In the middle of London, the White House organized a visit to the Liberal headquarters to keep the president away from central London, taking his meetings to Checkers and Blenheim Palace instead.
The city has the impression of being a potentially tense visit – following a NATO summit that Trump staged with angry gunshots against allies keys – it really was not happening at all. None of the tabloids in the city introduced Trump on their first pages. Inside their pages, the detailed coverage of the accident of the actor George Clooney had a higher bill than that of Trump
"Trump arrives? Nobody knows it", said a newspaper vendor, who refused to give his name. But even Trump's allies agreed with his assessment.
"People are more interested in the World Cup than Donald Trump," said Piers Morgan, a British TV personality and long-time friend of Trump. "It helped to distract attention, it was very helpful for him to focus on the chaotic government and the World Cup."
But Trumpism was still there in spirit, at least at Mayfair, where Bannon was busy stirring the populist pot. the fallout of a Brexit process supported by Trump since he was a presidential candidate.
"Trump has a big support group here, with Nigel and the strong Brexit team that has worked together for years," he said. "I am here to be a substitute for the British media."
Bannon was also to appear on the show by Fox News host Sean Hannity, who was broadcasting live from London at 2 pm local time
. In terms of Brexit, they say "hey, we're on the second anniversary of this thing, and we're still talking about half of the half," he said. "Said Bannon. "We must be bold.Bannon is new in his role as Trump's substitute: the former chief strategist of the president was fired from the White House last August and suffered a breakup with the president." is distanced from Bannon after the publication of "Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House", a book by Michael Wolff, calling "Sloppy Steve" and lobbing the worst possible epithet on him : Leaked
His Hannity appearance and his talk with the European media that Trump might watch, Bannon seemed to be online for a potential comeback with Trump, who has little allies on this side of the table. Atlantic
Bannon stated that he was in favor of Trump's combative coup at the NATO summit in Brussels, where he urged his European allies to double their defense spending and accused Germany of being "captive to Russia" and paying "Billions and billions of dollars While Trump's comments have been interpreted as an effort to weaken the alliance that has held his allies together since the Second World War, Bannon has insisted that the only thing that has happened is that it's not the same. His former boss's goal was quite the contrary.
"This is not hard rhetoric," Bannon said. "It's what I call a discussion with partners." There's no more happy conversation. </ P> <p> The reason he does this is that he wants the person to be happy. alliance works. "
Despite the main distractions of Trump's visit, his right-wing allies tried to counterbalance the planned protests.
Some contemplated giving interviews to a West Kensington pub that renamed itself "The Trump Arms" in honor of the president's visit
but even a bitter supporter admitted that the moment might have been to be better chosen
. People ask me if you are looking forward to Trump's trip, I say, not because it ruins my viewing of the World Cup, "said Harris-Quinney." I would be there in Russia when it does not. did not come. And the fact that the government is in disarray is a huge deal. This has made this week one of the most interesting since the Brexit vote. "
The members of the administration were eager to advertise, even though it was covered by local politics and world sporting events – and even though President Trump probably knows this country better than anybody else. any president in recent history, "said Ambassador Woody Johnson to the press on the occasion of an official press conference. Last week's conference call
"It's here that his mother was born … that's why the bust of Churchill is currently in the oval office." He knows he's the opportunity to make this special relationship even stronger. "
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