Trump Hands Corbyn a Golden Ticket. Let’s Hope He Uses It

In a recent interview with Britain’s Brexit Party leader, Nigel Farage, US President Donald Trump did to his friend, Britain’s current PM Boris Johnson (BoJo the Racist Clown), what he had done to BoJo’s predecessor, Theresa May: he told the British public that aspects of BoJo’s negotiated Withdrawal Agreement could prevent the UK from negotiating a “free trade” deal with the US.

MAY DAY
When May’s government was found to be in contempt of Parliament—the first to receive the honour—it was forced to release the advice on post-Brexit EU customs arrangements given by the Attorney-General, Jeffrey Cox. The advice clarified that May’s arrangements to keep an open border in Northern Ireland (as demanded by the Good Friday Agreement 1998) potentially trapped the UK in the EU Customs Union and therefore prevented the UK from negotiating and ratifying a “free trade” deal with Britain’s biggest sole foreign market, the US.

Remainer MPs voted down May’s deal because they want to Remain in the EU. They hoped that rejecting it would buy more time to scupper Brexit. Hardcore Brexiteer MPs voted it down because of the potential restrictions to “free trade.” Putting aside the fact that a “free trade” deal with the US would be a disaster for ordinary, working-class Britons, getting his Withdrawal Agreement passed into law is the cornerstone of the current PM BoJo’s electoral campaign. But now, thanks to Trump, BoJo is basically telling voters, “We’ll leave the EU and relinquish our current trade arrangements but we won’t be able to strike a deal with the US.” Former Trade Secretary (and war criminal), Liam Fox, tried to claim that Trump was wrong, that the UK could negotiate a “free trade” with the US under BoJo’s plan. No. 10 responded to Trump by saying that the UK could make deals elsewhere, i.e., lose its biggest potential “free trade” market.

As the election campaign gets underway, the Labour Party’s leader Jeremy Corbyn now has a golden opportunity to make BoJo look even more buffoonish than he already is by pointing out Trump’s checkmating of the very deal on which BoJo called the general election: that under BoJo, Britain will lose easy access to both EU and US markets. This will help to neutralise the public backlash against Labour’s ridiculous Brexit policy: to negotiate a Labour Brexit and then allow most Labour MPs to campaign against it in a confirmatory, final referendum.

DEFLATING THE BALLOON
Trump has also put BoJo in a difficult strategic position, electorally. The Tories are the UK’s oldest continual party. They are the political faction of the establishment: banking, culture, education, health professionals, royalty, and media. They are happy to form coalitions and bribe other parties (called confidence-and-supply arrangements) during wartime or when failing to get outright majorities in elections. But during campaigns, they like to posture as the strongest party and act as if they need no assistance. But in the real world, if the Brexit Party stands candidates in Tory strongholds, the Tories could lose seats and even the election. Following Trump’s recommendation, Nigel Farage has offered to withdraw Brexit Party candidates in Tory areas if BoJo agrees to drop his EU Withdrawal Agreement and go for a no-deal or an ultra-hard Canada-style “free trade” arrangement. But winning a Tory majority in order to pass his self-proclaimed “oven-ready” deal is the very purpose of the general election.

The Tories may posture in opposition to Farage’s offer, but they might quietly form an unofficial electoral non-aggression pact with the Brexit Party while continuing to promote the Withdrawal Agreement. However, unless BoJo ditches his deal, Farage will surely smell a rat and abandon the pact. If the Tories reject Farage’s offer and campaign against the Brexit Party, their vote may split among right-wing voters and thus risk costing the Tories the election. Presumably without meaning to, or perhaps hoping that the Brexit Party will do incredibly well electorally, Trump has checkmated his friend BoJo. Not only this, but in the absence of unforeseen events, Trump has boosted the chances of Corbyn--a man he described as a “negative force” and a potential disaster for Britain--becoming PM.

CONCLUSION
The right-wing media (i.e., most British media) are protecting BoJo by focusing headlines more on Trump’s criticism of Corbyn during the Farage interview than on the much more important rejection of BoJo’s bill. If Corbyn does become PM, in addition to his brilliance as a campaigner and the quality of Labour’s grassroots policies, Corbyn will have his political enemy Donald Trump to thank. But for that, he needs to emphasise and repeat BoJo’s new Brexit problem: that he’s campaigning on a deal described as a dud by the main buyer.

© Copyright 2019 by AxisofLogic.com

This material is available for republication as long as reprints include verbatim copy of the article in its entirety, respecting its integrity. Reprints must cite the author and Axis of Logic as the original source including a "live link" to the article. Thank you!