Etiquette is a code of behaviour that delineates expectations on the way to conduct oneself socially according to conventional norms. Although each culture tends to have its own set of manners, there is a common set of norms of respect usually adhered to. It certainly goes without saying that there is a minimum list that is customary not to do, especially when you are being treated as a visiting guest.
Tact itself has never been among President Donald Trump’s greatest fortitude. In fact, many believe he is simply a moron who should never have graced the office of the US presidency. It was always asking for aggravation when affording him the courtesy of all the pomp and ceremony of a state visit.
The contrast between his welcome and respond could not have been starker. As the US President was given the privilege of a 41-gun salute, he was unable to resist baring his Islamophobic teeth when launching another tirade again the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, calling him “a stone cold loser” for daring to question why Trump had been granted a state visit since it wasn’t the norm. As that was not enough, he was also on record for describing the Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle, who is mixed race,, as “nasty.” She did not attend the banquet in his honour following the birth of her son Archie.
The former game show host also proved that he had no regard for diplomatic conventions like not interfering in the tern internal affairs of another country, least of all his host’s.
Even before he arrived to the UK, he indicated his animosity towards His Majesty’s Opposition Leader, Jeremy Corbyn, suggesting he was ‘making a mistake’ by refusing to meet him and later adding in an interview with the Sunday Times that he would want “to know” about him before sharing American intelligence. Not for the first time, he praised Brexit Leader, Nigel Farage, suggesting that he should be involved in negotiations with Brussels over Britain’s exit from the EU. He described the UK’s EU membership as “shackles.”
As if that was not enough, the US President also let it be known to The Sun newspaper that he was backing Conservative Party leadership contender Boris Johnson to be the next UK Prime Minister. To boot, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was caught on tape telling Jewish leaders leaked to the Washington Post that the US would intervene to try to stop Corbyn becoming prime minister in Britain.
Trump insisted that it was he who had not wanted to meet the Labour Leader as he was “somewhat of a negative force.” In one of his many contradictions, he said he did not know Corbyn “never met him, never spoke to him” but wanted to meet him then, “told him I did not want to do that.”
The erratic and impulsive tweets are not just mischievous but dangerous coming from the holder of the most powerful office in the world. They do not certainly need any endorsements of their racist and bigoted content, which equally need to be isolated and condemned.
Trump has already been appeased by the political leaders of Britain in ways that would seem unimaginable even before he was elected. It was worrying when such senior Tories as Hunt are prepared to accept his Islamophobic retweets as the norm. Returning from his controversial state visit to Britain, Trump stepped up his personal campaign to oust Khan, describing his tenure as a “disaster” after unbelievably sharing a tweet with far-right commentator Katie Hopkins in which she once again bared her anti-Muslim hatred by labelling the UK capital as “Khan’s Londonistan.”
Supporting the Islamophobic re-tweet, Hunt said, “President Trump has his own style and I wouldn’t use those words myself but the sentiment is enormously supported.”
Such support for Islamophobic tweets by potentially future Prime Minister is unbelievable. It just shows how deeply ingrained is Islamophobia in the Conservative Party and needs to be rooted out. But most seriously such views normalises hate against Muslims.
