Has the Trump-Starmer bromance ended? Twelve hours prior. Joe Pike, Reuters politics correspondent. It was an improbable political friendship: the publicity-seeking, right-wing tycoon bonding with a reserved, left-wing London attorney. Cupid’s arrow hit during a two-hour dinner at Trump Tower in September 2024. Five months afterward in the Oval Office, Starmer pulled out an invitation from the King. The president nearly purred with satisfaction. The robustness of that early Trump-Starmer bond came as a surprise and stood out as a rare clear win for the PM during a challenging first year at home. Starmer’s aides often proclaimed that their meticulously orchestrated charm campaign had succeeded. They cited the UK’s superior trading ties with Washington as proof. Yet the recent breakdown of that very friendship also brings advantages. The prime minister is growing increasingly at ease with exploiting opportunities. The disintegration.
