Johnson dominating US news, damaging reputation

Skylar Baker-Jordan, The Independent

You know there’s a crisis in Westminster when the Americans care. Monday morning, an op-ed eviscerating Boris Johnson appeared in the Times, written by none other than Andrew Marr, perhaps the Grand Poobah of British political journalists. Crucially, though, this was not the Times, the London-based publication known throughout the UK. It was the New York Times. This is but the latest in an avalanche of negative coverage Boris Johnson has received this side of the Atlantic. Partygate(s) has, by the standards of an American press almost exclusively interested in domestic events, been covered unusually extensively. Last week, I was startled when CNN carried Prime Minister’s Question’s live. My grandfather, a Tennessee-based blue-blooded American, then began to ask me questions about Boris Johnson’s position after watching an ABC World News Tonight report on his perils.

Many Americans haven’t known the name of the British prime minister since Tony Blair helped George W. Bush invade Iraq (and we all remember how well that turned out.) Before I could explain to my grandfather the nuances — if indeed there are any — of why Johnson was in trouble, my grandmother chimed in. “He’s a Trumpy,” she declared. We all remember how well that turned out, too.

A right-wing populist with unkempt blonde hair who doesn’t think the rules apply to him, the prime minister invites the comparison. Each day he remains in office is a day where the UK’s standing in the world is diminished by this arrogant buffoon. Simply put, I’m not sure Britain’s international reputation can survive Boris Johnson. Think I’m bluffing? “UK’s Boris Johnson ends week of turmoil in weakened position,” an Associated Press article reported over the weekend. “Boris Johnson under fire” read a headline from the right-wing Fox News. The Washington Post went a step further, asking the question: “Who could replace Boris Johnson?” as if the PM were already gone. As a socialist, I would love for Johnson’s replacement to be Keir Starmer rather than some awful lookalike Conservative. Frankly, though, at this point it matters less who replaces Boris Johnson so long as someone does. This man is an international punchline and a national liability. Brits, let me tell you: The Biden administration is literally laughing at your country.

This does not bode well for the UK, especially considering Biden already was reported not to trust the Johnson government because of its ties to Trump. This was seen most clearly in Biden’s decision not to get British input on the withdrawal from Afghanistan. With Russia saber-rattling on its Ukrainian border and in the Baltics, the UK needs a prime minister that the Americans can not only take seriously but can respect. That the prime minister is instead so distracted by his own scandal that he is rescheduling calls with Vladimir Putin does not inspire that needed respect or trust.

The damage this is doing to Britain’s standing in the world cannot be overstated. Already the UK has suffered a tarnished image because of Brexit. While a YouGov poll from December 2020 found that most Americans were not paying attention to Brexit — good news for the UK — the same cannot be said of US leaders in business and politics. “Why would anyone trust Brexit Britain again?” a headline from CNN Business asked last year, shortly after Johnson tried to rewrite the Brexit deal he’d signed mere months before.

At the heart of this desired renegotiation was the Northern Ireland Protocol, which governs trade between the province and the rest of the UK post-Brexit. This got Americans’ attention. Arguably, the true special relationship is not between the US and UK but between Ireland and America. This is perhaps most evidenced in a 1998 poll taken shortly after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement: 50 per cent of Americans then favoured Irish reunification, compared to only 17% believing Northern Ireland should remain in the UK. Disastrous Brexit negotiations prompted then-candidate Biden to tweet: “Any trade deal between the US and UK must be contingent upon respect for the Agreement and preventing the return of a hard border. Period.” The UK desperately needs a trade deal with the US, but Joe Biden has signaled he has no interest in negotiating that with Johnson. That’s largely down to his handling of Northern Ireland, which turns off both Democrats and Republicans, most of whom depend on Irish-American voters to win elections and many of whom are themselves descended from Irish immigrants. The president himself has made much of his Irish heritage.

Clearly, Johnson began from a weakened position. American policymakers already viewed him skeptically, but now he’s a punchline.