LONDON (Realist English). It is 2029 — at least in the fevered imagination of Trump’s admirers and detractors — and Donald Trump is cast not only as U.S. “President-for-Life” but also as Britain’s prime minister. The scenario, once dismissed as satire, suddenly feels less implausible as Trump’s second U.K. state visit fuels speculation and parody alike.
The latest burst came from GB News, where former MP Jacob Rees-Mogg mused on-air: “Should Donald Trump become Britain’s next prime minister?” On social media he added, helpfully, that Trump’s Scottish-born mother could make him “eligible” once his U.S. term ends in 2029.
Critics mocked the idea with barbed comparisons: Trump “could hardly be worse than Liz Truss,” one commentator quipped, or “less popular than Keir Starmer.” But Trump’s supporters on X fumed over perceived slights. “No red carpet was rolled out. The British Prime Minister did not come to greet him. Just disgusting,” wrote one MAGA loyalist.
Russian state outlets amplified the outrage. “NO red carpet for Trump in London,” Russia Today declared, contrasting it with the welcome extended to Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Few noted that Britain’s ceremonial carpet was otherwise occupied — restraining Prince Andrew, joked British columnists.
The official itinerary was heavy on pageantry yet light on public access. Trump was treated to a golden carriage procession through Windsor Castle, witnessed mainly by soldiers. “Embarrassing, like a fairground ride to entertain the US President,” sniffed the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden.
For Trump, however, the symbolism was irresistible. Observers likened his fondness for military spectacle to Russia’s czar Paul I, infamous for punishing soldiers over drill errors and issuing whimsical uniform decrees. Paul’s name lives on through “Potemkin villages” — façades masking harsher realities.
For Britain, Trump’s visit had its own Potemkin quality: pomp without people, spectacle without substance, and a reminder that sometimes the façade is not built to hide reality but to welcome it.
