Gulf Today Report
Former US President Donald Trump had reportedly made the scathing comment that he would pay £100,000 to not hear the speeches made by former British Prime Minister Theresa May, after learning that she was paid that amount to make corporate appearances.
READ MORE
Biden says 'looking' at Russia retaliation over cyberattack
Assailants kill Indian ruling party politician in Kashmir
American national wins $1m in Dubai Duty Free raffle draw
Sharing the anecdote, British broadcaster Piers Morgan wrote in the Spectator that when he informed Mr Trump that Ms May “gets paid more than £100,000 a pop for speeches”, the former president “exploded into mocking laughter and spluttered: ‘Are you kidding me? I’d pay £100,000 not to hear her talk!’”
The relationship between Mr Trump and Ms May has often been described as “dysfunctional” in the media as the duo, after an initial declaration of a “special relationship”, clashed in public over a range of matters, according to the Independent.
Theresa May.
Prominently, these clashes were over the leaks of sensitive information and Britain’s decision to stop sharing intelligence with the US in the aftermath of the 2017 Manchester suicide bombing and the pushback from Ms May after Mr Trump shared a message from a far-right anti-Muslim campaigner. The incident culminated in Mr Trump asking the then-British prime minister to focus on terrorism in the UK.
“Don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom,” Mr Trump tweeted after he was widely criticised for sharing inflammatory videos posted by a British far-right group
The rift between the two leaders became more apparent during the G7 meeting in June, 2018, when Mr Trump kept her out of his list of people with whom he shared a great rapport.
“I’d say the level of relationship is a 10. We have a great relationship. Angela [Merkel], and Emmanuel [Macron] and Justin [Trudeau] ... I would say the relationship is a 10.”
He also slammed Ms May for her handling of the Brexit saying that she ignored his advice on how to carry out the negotiation and now “it’s tearing a country apart.”