According to British media reports, U.S. President Donald Trump has revealed he personally requested that London Mayor Sadiq Khan be excluded from the state banquet during his second state visit to the UK. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump reignited his feud with the mayor, labeling him “among the worst mayors in the world” and accusing him of mismanaging rising crime and immigration issues in London. “I didn’t want him there,” Trump stated.
The president linked his decision to what he described as a decline in London, citing an increase in stabbings and a rise in “dirt and filth.” He added, “I have a certain pride in London and the UK. My mother was born in Scotland. And when I see Mayor Khan do a bad job… it’s not the same.”
This move came after Sadiq Khan had publicly criticized Trump ahead of his visit. In an opinion piece for The Guardian, the mayor accused the president of “fanning the flames of divisive, far-right politics.” On Wednesday, Khan reiterated his stance, saying that Trump had emboldened extremists and that “those who seek to divide us will not win.” The long-standing feud between the two leaders dates back to 2015 when Khan spoke out against Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban. Over the years, Trump has called Khan a “stone cold loser,” while Khan’s office famously permitted the inflatable “Trump baby” balloon during the 2018 UK visit.
In addition to his comments on Khan, Trump also renewed his attacks on Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. According to the Indian daily The Tribune, he posted on Truth Social, criticizing her Somali heritage. He described Somalia as “plagued by poverty, hunger, terrorism, piracy, decades of civil war, corruption, and pervasive violence,” before sarcastically adding, “All of this, and Ilhan Omar tells us how to run America!” He also questioned her citizenship, referencing an old rumor. During his conversation on Air Force One, Trump doubled down, calling Omar “terrible” and suggesting she should be impeached, arguing that “they come from a place with nothing… and then they tell us how to run our country.”
Trump’s remarks came shortly after a Republican-led resolution to censure Omar failed in the House of Representatives by a narrow vote of 214-213, with four Republicans joining the Democrats to oppose it. In response on social media, Omar thanked her colleagues for “not furthering lies on the House floor,” celebrating the outcome as “finally some sanity in the House.”
