Letter to the FT that stingingly sums up Brexit and the shit creek we now find ourselves in. A terrible idea (naive, prejudiced and uninformed) that has deeply divided us and left us poorer and less secure… but unwilling to face up to the damage we’ve done to ourselves. While the EU moves on.

Farage makes no secret of his admiration for the ugly politics of Trump, Vance, Musk and Andrew Tate.. and his willingness to do Putin’s bidding (eg, Brexit). We just have to hope that fair-minded British people will ultimately choose tolerance and kindness over anger and division and reject Reform.

“This combination of extreme narcissism and considered cruelty is the distilled essence of Trump… that both Trump and Putin purport to be exemplars of Christian values, and are seen as such by millions of their own people, is the cruellest joke of all.” www.thetimes.com/article/0f53...

AP:

Join the dots…. Useful background info for Philip Rycroft’s independent review into foreign interference in UK politics.

Struggling to understand how any American could continue to support this ghastly caricature of a president.

The sooner we can wean ourselves off reliance on the US the better. Giving Ukraine the frozen Russian assets would be a good start…

Whose project? Look to Peter Thiel, Palantir, Project 25, and the unfolding plan to break up Europe from within.

“…look beyond the politics and the hate. The finances [crypto] are key as is tech, particularly an unregulated AI landscape.” Brilliant piece: pulls together why the rise of the far right is being pushed so hard by big tech and rich elites.

The Trump administration plans to require all foreign tourists to provide their social media histories from the last five years to enter the country. Yes, I said TOURISTS — not immigrants. This is insane. It will DECIMATE the U.S. tourism industry.

From Private Eye. And today Farage gets a big donation from a crypto baron.

I think we all know too… www.thetimes.com/article/f099...

This sentence was taken out of a lecture they commissioned, reviewed through the full editorial process, and recorded four weeks ago in front of 500 people in the BBC Radio Theatre. I was told the decision came from the highest levels within the BBC. /2

The report into Boris Johnson’s record during the Covid epidemic blames a ‘toxic, sexist and chaotic culture’ in Downing Street. Who’d have thought it?

‼️CONFIRMED: Nearly 7 million people turned out for No Kings today. With more than 2,700 lawful and peaceful protests across all 50 states, today’s mobilization was 14 times larger than both of Trump’s presidential inaugurations combined, marking a historic moment of unity and resistance. #NoKings

“We all know Brexit’s to blame for the crisis facing UK steel.. While Keir Starmer fiddles in India, Rome burns. The British steel industry now faces a calamity so severe, insiders say it could be “terminal” www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

@mrjamesob.bsky.social It’s the real prospect of digital ID cards which has galvanised Reform crackpots who are now busy pushing alarmist threats out in social media from the likes of former Pfizer VP Dr Mike Yeadon.

Well done, Kent.

This is a breathtaking abuse of the law and power by the President of the United States. America is on the brink of martial law. Do not be silent.

Why is Starmer becoming more confident criticising Brexit? Because quietly, without any great drama, a consensus has been reached. It's a disaster inews.co.uk/opinion/brex...

From 2013:- “Nigel Farage schooldays letter reveals concerns over fascism” www.channel4.com/news/nigel-f...

“You mentioned your grave concern about the Reform policy to deport people who already live here. Do you think that’s an amoral policy?” @bbclaurak.bsky.social “Yes I do” - Keir Starmer 👏 “They are our neighbors..they are apart of who we are. It will rip this country apart”

It’s clear that Farage and his funders are all about self-enrichment and unchecked power. That’s it. They don’t care a jot about ordinary working people. Just like Trump, they despise voters who fall for their blatant lies and nationalist tactics designed to sow division and hatred.

Absolutely.. government should be calmly articulating the benefits to the UK of legal immigration. Time to be bold and put some clear water between themselves and Reform on immigration rather than chasing them down far-right rabbit holes.

Britons would rather have Labour government run by Starmer than Reform one led by Farage, poll suggests - www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...

“It seems right to stand up among the naysayers when the most deplorable of all US presidents arrives on his second state visit to Britain… a man whose conduct in public office has brought shame on the United States.”

The LibDem leader nails it again. Government departments and ministers must also get off X and stop using it as a comms platform.

Some more direct incitement from Musk This man burned his sheep's clothing a long time ago and is now fully leaning into his right wing white supremacist nationalism

Excellent piece by @jonathanfreedland.bsky.social, especially in drawing attention to the sickening double standards of those on the right demanding civilities from their opponents that they refuse to grant to their opponents.

Assessing political violence in America is inherently subjective. But the data available—largely compiled by researchers whom sceptical conservatives would probably dismiss as biased—suggest Charlie Kirk’s killing is not representative of broader trends

You’re welcome.

@mrjamesob.bsky.social Worth remembering this when Farage gloats over Angela Raynor’s demise during the Reform party conference…

This should be required viewing for anyone in the UK tempted to vote for Reform.

"Give me the Nobel Peace Prize or you'll be sorry" doesn't sound very peaceful.

News Analysis: In firing the head of the agency that collects labor statistics, President Trump underscored his tendency to suppress facts he doesn’t like and promote his own version of reality. nyti.ms/3IYnoNF

Makes you wonder if Farage, biggest Brexit snake oil salesman of them all, is really as popular as Labour and the Tories fear? www.thetimes.com/article/dc1d...

Trump never was very welcome in Scotland…

Done

What a surprise… www.thetimes.com/article/346e...

@mrjamesob.bsky.social One reason why Trump did it: eyeing the positive coverage on Fox News of Israel’s targeted bombings of Iran. bsky.app/profile/greg...

Morning Bluesky. Trump’s bombing may actually have sped up Iran’s nuclear programme.

Graph shows what happened after Trump pulled the US out of the Iran nuclear deal under which Iran had ‘significantly reduced its nuclear program and accepted strict monitoring and verification safeguards to ensure its program is solely for peaceful purposes.’ ABC News: share.google/QHDLxcKo0wb0...

The turnout in Idaho for #NoKings dwarfed Trump’s parade. Newsmax estimated the DC turnout at 10k, a far cry from the 200k expected.

Keir Starmer leads Nigel Farage by 15pts on who Britons think would be the best PM Starmer (44%) vs Farage (29%) Starmer (36%) vs Badenoch (25%) Starmer (27%) vs Davey (25%) Davey (41%) vs Farage (27%) Davey (33%) vs Badenoch (21%) Badenoch (29%) vs Farage (25%) yougov.co.uk/politics/art...

This should be reassuring but sadly it’s quite possible to imagine beleaguered Tories joining forces with Reform and UK voters doing the unthinkable and voting in Farage, just as US voters did with Trump. The media has a big responsibility here..

“The idea that Johnson is the route to Tory recovery is preposterous. He's the root cause of their current collapse... His betrayals have deepened the despairing political cynicism that pervades Britain now. The country has been damaged in every way by his legacy.” www.thetimes.com/article/1d32...

“President Trump is taking every opportunity to monetize the presidency in ways that we could never imagine.” www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

From the day Britain left the EU, this reset was inevitable. What a pointless waste of time, money and effort | Simon Jenkins