Donald Trump comments on UK figures during Ireland visit
Donald Trump, during his recent visit to Ireland, referred to Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham as “a very nice guy” but noted he was “on the liberal side”, reports BritPanorama.
This visit garnered significant attention, especially as the US President expressed support for the idea of Irish unification.
When asked about Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s reaction to his comments on a united Ireland, Trump responded that he was unsure about Burnham’s stance.
He added, “I’ve spoken to him. I think he’s a very nice guy. He tends to be on the liberal side, unfortunately.”.
Trump also reiterated his belief that Prime Minister Sunak plans to approve further drilling in the North Sea, stating he would be “stopping the stupid windmills”.
The president’s favourable remarks about Burnham echo earlier comments he made regarding Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
In January last year, shortly after regaining the presidency, Trump described his relationship with Starmer as “very good” and expressed admiration for him, acknowledging their political differences. He noted, “He’s liberal, which is a bit different from me, but I think he’s a very good person and I think he’s done a very good job thus far.”
Relations between Trump and Starmer later became complicated, particularly due to disagreements over the Iran conflict and Trump’s controversial desire to annex Greenland.
Despite these tensions, as recently as June, Trump referred to Starmer as “a very nice man” and even mentioned he considered him “sort of a friend of mine”.
During his visit, Trump also addressed the topic of artificial intelligence, cautioning against “very negative forces” suggesting potential harms from the technology. He expressed a desire for the US to maintain its leadership in the AI sector.
“We’re leading China in AI. We’re the most sophisticated country in the world, and frankly I want to keep it that way because whoever wins AI wins,” Trump remarked from his golf course in Ireland when queried about the regulation of the AI industry.
He suggested potential regulations, stating, “We could put guardrails. We can do this and that. But I think you have a lot of very negative forces that are bringing it up that shouldn’t be bringing it up and they’re bringing up things that won’t happen.”
