Boris Johnson and Donald Trump seem just like each other — you could not trust them as far as you could throw them

He is a habitual liar, a cheat, a sexist, a xenophobe who hates the EU — and a conspiratorial narcissist to boot.
By Brian McClinton
Published 21st Jun 2019, 00:49 BST
President Donald Trump. He even cheats at golf, according to a new book about himPresident Donald Trump. He even cheats at golf, according to a new book about him
President Donald Trump. He even cheats at golf, according to a new book about him

Of whom is this a description?

The answer is that it could fit either Donald Trump or Boris Johnson.

Matthew Parris’s recent description of Johnson in The Times as ‘a nasty piece of work’ could equally be applied to Trump.

Boris Johnson. The greater the proximity to him, the less you like him, said the author of a book about himBoris Johnson. The greater the proximity to him, the less you like him, said the author of a book about him
Boris Johnson. The greater the proximity to him, the less you like him, said the author of a book about him
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The same is true of Max Hastings’ description of Johnson as ‘a serial bonker and manic self-publicist’.

You couldn’t trust either of them as far as you could throw them.

According to a new book, Commander in Cheat by Rick Reilly, Trump even cheats at golf, a game where honour is more important even than winning.

A ball that Trump hits into the woods, the water or a bunker will appear miraculously on the green.

Brian McClinton, editor Irish FreethinkerBrian McClinton, editor Irish Freethinker
Brian McClinton, editor Irish Freethinker
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At Winged Foot, where Trump is a member, the caddies saw him kick the ball back onto the fairway so often that they took to calling him Pele.

Sonia Purnell, author of Just Boris, thinks that Johnson is the most ruthless, ambitious person she has ever met.

The greater the proximity to him, the less you like him.

He tells untruths and is a womaniser. Purnell recalls that on one occasion he was caught by the News of the World, leaving the flat of one mistress and going to the flat of another mistress.

Weirdly, one of these two men is President of the United States and the other could be Prime Minister of Britain by the end of July.

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We are indeed living in a bizarre period where the world has gone mad for authoritarian nationalists and self-serving showmen.

How has it come to this? Why are so many seeking magic solutions to complex problems in larger than life bluffers and chancers?

We don’t trust politicians because they don’t tell the truth, and yet we rush to support the most bare-faced members of the pack.

We hear much of certain misbehaving sportsmen or pop stars being bad role models and occasionally losing their jobs or sponsorships as a result.

Are persons of even worse moral turpitude now to be regarded as the ideal exemplars for young people who aspire to a career in politics?

• Brian McClinton is editor of Irish Freethinker

Related topics:Boris JohnsonDonald TrumpMatthew Parris