Yvette Cooper Hits Out At ‘Really Damaging’ Tariffs As Trump Slaps Them On Canada And Mexico

Posted on 02/02/2025 by Boris Clair

Yvette Cooper has described import tariffs as “really damaging” for the world economy as Donald Trump slapped them on Mexico and Canada.

The home secretary said the UK government was focused on “removing barriers to trade” rather than putting up new ones.

Trump said most goods entering the US from Mexico and Canada will have a 25% tariff added to them, except for Canadian oil, which will see a 10% tariff.

He said it was because the two countries were not doing enough to stop drugs entering the US, or tackle illegal immigration.

Trump also said he was imposing a new 10% tariff on goods from China on top of existing duties.

The US president has also threatened to impose tariffs on EU exports to America – raising fears that he could do the same for British goods being sold to the US.

Asked about the move on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme this morning, Cooper said: “Tariff increases right across the world can have a really damaging impact on global growth and trade so I don’t think that’s what anybody wants to see.

“The focus for Johnny Reynolds, our business and trade secretary, is on building trade links and better trading relations and removing barriers to trade with the US and also with other European countries and with countries right across the world.

“We want to reduce the barriers to trade, make it easier for businesses.”

Tariffs are charges placed on imported goods as they enter the country, paid by the company or individual bringing the good in.

Economists are almost unanimous that tariffs are passed on to the consumer as higher prices.

Snoop Dogg Responds To Critics After Backlash Over Performance At Pro-Trump Event

Posted on 29/01/2025 by Boris Clair

Snoop Dogg has responded to the backlash surrounding his performance at an event celebrating the inauguration of Donald Trump.

While the Grammy-nominated rapper did not perform at the inauguration itself, he was part of the line-up for the Crypto Ball, held in Washington D.C. two days before Trump was sworn in as president for the second time.

Since then, Snoop has faced a severe backlash, and seen his Instagram followers plummet by half a million in the space of just over a week.

Addressing the controversy in an Instagram video, Snoop said: “Y’all can’t hate enough, I love too much.

“Get your life right, stop worrying about mine. I’m cool. I’m together.”

Insisting he’s “still a Black man”, Snoop concluded: “All out, till you ball out. or till you fall out.”

See more of Snoop’s comments in the Entertainment Tonight report below:

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="YouTube" data-component-id="6242" data-component-props="{"itemType":"video","index":10,"contentIndexByType":1,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

","type":"video","meta":{"author":"Entertainment Tonight","author_url":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdtXPiqI2cLorKaPrfpKc4g","cache_age":86400,"description":"Snoop Dogg addresses his ongoing backlash on Instagram, a week after performing at President Donald Trump’s inauguration. While the rapper previously voiced criticism of the new Head of State during his first term, Snoop — along with Nelly, Jason Aldean and more music stars – was part of the presidential celebration in Washington D.C. last week. Snoop tells fans, ‘We gotta learn how to pick each other up, rather than put each other down.’","options":{"_cc_load_policy":{"label":"Closed captions","value":false},"_end":{"label":"End on","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"_start":{"label":"Start from","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"click_to_play":{"label":"Hold load & play until clicked","value":false}},"provider_name":"YouTube","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/9BdjP-n8rIs/maxresdefault.jpg","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"Snoop Dogg Addresses Trump Inauguration Performance BACKLASH","type":"video","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BdjP-n8rIs","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isAdsFree":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"679a06f5e4b0535cbc5fab01","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/snoop-dogg-addresses-backlash-donald-trumo-event-inauguration_uk_679a06f5e4b0535cbc5fab01","entryTagsList":"donald-trump,snoop-dogg","sectionSlug":"entertainment","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"politics","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.entertainment","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"8b034f64-513c-4987-b16f-42d6008f7feb","clickToPlayPlayer":"5a777b9b-81fe-41a6-8302-59e9953ee8a2","videoPagePlayer":"19654b65-409c-4b38-90db-80cbdea02cf4"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":10},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"679a06f5e4b0535cbc5fab01","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","links":{"relativeLink":"news/donald-trump","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump"},"relegenceId":2789214,"section":{"title":"News","slug":"news"},"topic":{"title":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump/"},{"name":"Snoop Dogg","slug":"snoop-dogg","links":{"relativeLink":"news/snoop-dogg","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/snoop-dogg","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/snoop-dogg"},"relegenceId":1123921,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/snoop-dogg/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

[embedded content]

In the early years of Trump’s political career, Snoop had been one of his most vocal critics, and branded any Black artist willing to perform at the 2017 inauguration an “uncle Tom” in an Instagram post.

Later that year, Snoop pointed a toy gun at a clown-like Trump lookalike in the music video for his song Lavender, prompting the president to suggest on the website then known as Twitter that the (in his words) “failing” rapper should face “jail time”.

However, last year, Snoop insisted he had “nothing but love and respect for Donald Trump”, after he pardoned Michael Harris, the co-founder of Death Row Records, who was in prison on drug offences, before leaving office three years prior.

Other artists to have faced criticism for performing at pro-Trump events in the wake of his victory in last year’s presidential election include American Idol winner Carrie Underwood, country star Billy Ray Cyrus and rapper Nelly.

Trump Has Some Surprising Words Of Praise For Starmer Despite Musk Row

Posted on 26/01/2025 by Boris Clair

Donald Trump has offered some surprising praise up to Keir Starmer despite not calling the UK PM during his first five days back in office.

The US president, who was inaugurated on Monday, is yet to follow tradition and speak to the UK prime minister since his second term.

But Trump seemed to defy concerns that he might be holding a grudge against the Labour leader when speaking to the BBC on board Air Force One on Saturday.

“I get along with him well. I like him a lot,” the president said.

“He’s liberal, which is a bit different from me, but I think he’s a very good person and I think he’s done a very good job thus far.

“He’s represented his country in terms of philosophy.

“I may not agree with his philosophy, but I have a very good relationship with him.”

And when asked where he might go for his first international trip since returning to the White House, Trump said: “It could be Saudi Arabia, it could be UK. Traditionally it could be UK.

“Last time I went to Saudi Arabia because they agreed to buy $450 billion of American United States merchandise.”

Trump also promised he would be talking to Starmer “over the next 24 hours”.

He has met the UK leader on multiple occasions, including when the Labour leader flew to Trump Tower in New York before the presidential election.

However, the delicate friendship they struck up at the time was quickly overshadowed by tech billionaire Elon Musk.

Now Trump’s informal adviser, Musk has initiated a war of words against Starmer ever since the PM was elected, calling the Labour leader “evil” and questioning his record as the director of public prosecutions over grooming gangs.

Even so, foreign secretary David Lammy said Starmer would be going to visit Trump in the US “within the next few weeks” last Sunday.

There are fears they could clash, as Trump wants to impose tariffs – which could weigh down an already embattled UK economy – and reduce the amount of military aid the US sends to the UK.

Labour’s plan to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius is expected to cause further friction, because there is a UK-US military base on the archipelago, and Starmer’s pick for Washington ambassador – Peter Mandelson – has raised some eyebrows among Trump’s inner circle.

There’s also the Labour cabinet’s own very public criticisms of Trump over the years when they were in opposition which ministers have been trying to overlook.

Trump Wants Canada As ’51st State,’ But Canadians Say No Thanks

Posted on 26/01/2025 by Boris Clair

Donald Trump once again suggested Canada give up being a sovereign nation and become America’s 51st state, and, once again, Canadians are saying no thanks — or in some cases, “eff off, eh.”

Although Canadian politicians have repeatedly called Trump’s suggestion “a joke,” the president insisted on Friday that Canadians would actually love to be part of the US because, he claims, the taxes would be lower.

He added that Canadians “wouldn’t have to worry about military, you wouldn’t have to worry about many of the things, you’d have better health coverage, you would have much better health coverage.”

You can watch Trump make his case to Canada below.

But based on the social media reactions, it doesn’t appear as if Trump is winning the hearts and minds of Canadian citizens.

Many people especially laughed at the notion that Canadians would want to give up socialised medicine for the US model of health care.

Billy Ray Cyrus Speaks Out After Weird Trump Inauguration Performance

Posted on 22/01/2025 by Boris Clair

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="YouTube" data-component-id="4576" data-component-props="{"itemType":"video","index":0,"contentIndexByType":1,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

","type":"video","meta":{"author":"PBS NewsHour","author_url":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6ZFN9Tx6xh-skXCuRHCDpQ","cache_age":86400,"description":"Watch PBS News for daily, breaking and live news, plus special coverage. We are home to PBS News Hour, ranked the most credible and objective TV news show.\n\nSubscribe for exclusive content in our newsletters: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/subscribe\nPBS News podcasts: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/podcasts\nStream your PBS favorites with the PBS app: https://to.pbs.org/2Jb8twG\nFind more from PBS News at https://www.pbs.org/newshour\nSubscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2HfsCD6\n\nFollow us:\nTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pbsnews\nX: http://www.twitter.com/newshour \nInstagram: http://www.instagram.com/newshour\nFacebook: http://www.pbs.org/newshour","options":{"_cc_load_policy":{"label":"Closed captions","value":false},"_end":{"label":"End on","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"_start":{"label":"Start from","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":"339"},"click_to_play":{"label":"Hold load & play until clicked","value":false}},"provider_name":"YouTube","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/EnUhCxhpavU/maxresdefault.jpg","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"WATCH: Billy Ray Cyrus performs at Liberty Ball | Trump 2025 Inauguration","type":"video","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnUhCxhpavU","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"6790bf86e4b0835f2b82e8cf","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/billy-ray-cyrus-addresses-weird-trump-performance_uk_6790bf86e4b0835f2b82e8cf","entryTagsList":"donald-trump,ukmusic,billy-ray-cyrus,@ai_seo_headline,@us_huffpost_now,@widget-imported","sectionSlug":"entertainment","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.entertainment","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"8b034f64-513c-4987-b16f-42d6008f7feb","clickToPlayPlayer":"5a777b9b-81fe-41a6-8302-59e9953ee8a2","videoPagePlayer":"19654b65-409c-4b38-90db-80cbdea02cf4"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":7},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"6790bf86e4b0835f2b82e8cf","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","links":{"relativeLink":"news/donald-trump","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump"},"relegenceId":2789214,"section":{"title":"News","slug":"news"},"topic":{"title":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump/"},{"name":"ukmusic","slug":"ukmusic","links":{"relativeLink":"news/ukmusic","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukmusic","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukmusic"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukmusic/"},{"name":"Billy Ray Cyrus","slug":"billy-ray-cyrus","links":{"relativeLink":"news/billy-ray-cyrus","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/billy-ray-cyrus","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/billy-ray-cyrus"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/billy-ray-cyrus/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

[embedded content]

Few people are singing the praises of Billy Ray Cyrus’ performance at the Liberty Ball celebrating Donald Trump’s inauguration — and the singer has blamed the bizarre set on technical issues.

On Tuesday, the country performer told People that he “wouldn’t have missed the honour of playing this event whether my microphone, guitar and monitors worked or not”.

“I was there because President Donald J. Trump invited me,” he said.

During his Monday night performance, the Billy Ray strummed his guitar and gravelly sang the lyrics to Old Town Road, his 2019 collaboration with Lil Nas X, while the song’s music video was shown behind him.

After the video ended, he continued playing Old Town Road on his guitar while whistling before attempting to sing the song a cappella.

“If you encourage me, I’ll keep going,” he said to the audience. “They told me to kill as much time as possible.”

Then, his guitar cut out as he tried to go into his 1992 hit, Achy Breaky Heart.

“Is my guitar still on? I think they cut me off. Is my guitar on, guys?” he called out to the tech crew.

“Is anybody awake?” he continued. “Where’s everybody at? Is anyone back there? Can somebody turn my guitar back on?”

Shortly after, two people from the tech crew came onstage to help Billy Ray with his guitar, but nothing worked. After a few more minutes, he resorted to performing a monotone, a cappella version of Achy Breaky Heart before finally exiting the stage.

As you might expect, the performance was mocked by some on social media, with one person even describing it as “the perfect metaphor for the next four years”.

Still, Billy Ray said that he had “a ball at the Liberty Ball” in his interview with People.

“I’ve learned through all these years when the producer says, ‘You’re on,’ you go entertain the folks even if the equipment goes to hell,” he told the outlet. “I was there for the people and we had a blast. That’s called rock ‘n’ roll!”

Nigel Farage Squirms As He Admits He ‘Did Not Make The Cut’ To Key Part Of Trump Inauguration

Posted on 21/01/2025 by Boris Clair

Nigel Farage had to admit he did not “make the cut” to sit in the Capitol rotunda to watch Donald Trump’s inauguration yesterday – but Boris Johnson did.

The Reform UK leader has long cast himself as a close friend to the US president, even offering to be the UK ambassador to Washington for the second Trump administration.

However, he had to admit the limits to that friendship on GB News last night.

When presenter Chris Hope asked if Farage was in the prestigious room in the middle of the Capitol building where Trump was sworn in, Farage haltingly replied: “No, no, no… didn’t make the cut, sadly.

“I had a good seat… but, no, I mean, look. Frankly, err, it… you know.”

Hope said: “I saw Boris Johnson in there, in rotunda, is he now the person Trump speaks to more than you?”

“No, he’s a former prime minister of the nation,” Farage said, slightly angrily. “He’s an occasional friend of Donald Trump.

“He supports Donald Trump when he’s going up and he doesn’t support Donald Trump when he’s going down. And I’ve supported him consistently now for almost a decade.”

Johnson has quite the on-off friendship with Trump, having slammed him in 2015 for “betraying a quite stupefying ignorance” for falsely saying there were “no-go zones” in London and claiming that he was “unfit” to become president.

While they spoke highly of one another while Trump was in office for his first term, Johnson then said the outgoing president was “completely wrong” for encouraging his supporters to storm the Capitol in 2021.

But by January 2024, Johnson – no longer PM or MP – said Trump’s return could be a “big win for the world”.

Meanwhile, Farage has been an avid Trump supporter for years, speaking at multiple rallies and flying over to the US repeatedly to back the Republican, despite critics asking why he is not more dedicated to his constituency.

The MP for Clacton was also a robust supporter of Trump’s new right-hand man, tech billionaire Elon Musk – until the world’s richest man turned on him earlier this month.

Hours after Farage told the media the X CEO was a “hero”, Musk claimed Reform needed a new leader because the current one “doesn’t have what it takes”.

The sudden split came after the Reform leader tried to distance himself from imprisoned far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whom Musk claimed should be released from jail.

Farage later said he wanted to “mend” his relationship with Musk.

Johnson was not the only former PM to fly to the US for the inauguration as Liz Truss also attended.

Current PM Keir Starmer was not invited, although that is in line with tradition – no serving UK prime minister has ever attended the swearing-in ceremony of a US president going back to when records began in 1874, according to analysis from the Press Association.

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="Twitter" data-component-id="1746" data-component-props="{"itemType":"rich","index":24,"contentIndexByType":1,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

Chris Hope, \"You watched the inauguration, where were you, were you in the Capital rotunda?\"

Nigel Farage, \"No.. No.. No.. Didn’t make the cut.. I had a good seat.. But.. No.. I mean look.. Frankly.. Err.. It.. You know\"

Chris Hope, \"I saw Boris Johnson in there, is he now the… pic.twitter.com/SsIEmMUodM

— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) January 21, 2025

","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Farrukh","author_url":"https://twitter.com/implausibleblog","cache_age":86400,"description":"Chris Hope, \"You watched the inauguration, where were you, were you in the Capital rotunda?\"Nigel Farage, \"No.. No.. No.. Didn’t make the cut.. I had a good seat.. But.. No.. I mean look.. Frankly.. Err.. It.. You know\"Chris Hope, \"I saw Boris Johnson in there, is he now the… pic.twitter.com/SsIEmMUodM— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) January 21, 2025\n\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/ext_tw_video_thumb/1881496683978055680/pu/img/yFTSDIVrARn9gRq2.jpg:large","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"Farrukh on Twitter / X","type":"rich","url":"https://twitter.com/implausibleblog/status/1881497185725853764","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"678f6096e4b0a55290ff655b","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/nigel-farage-admits-exclusion-from-trump-inauguration-event_uk_678f6096e4b0a55290ff655b","entryTagsList":"boris-johnson,donald-trump,nigel-farage,gb-news,@ai_seo_headline","sectionSlug":"politics","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.politics","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"8b034f64-513c-4987-b16f-42d6008f7feb","clickToPlayPlayer":"5a777b9b-81fe-41a6-8302-59e9953ee8a2","videoPagePlayer":"19654b65-409c-4b38-90db-80cbdea02cf4"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":12},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"678f6096e4b0a55290ff655b","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":"boris johnson","slug":"boris-johnson","links":{"relativeLink":"news/boris-johnson","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/boris-johnson","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/boris-johnson"},"section":{"title":"Politics","slug":"politics"},"topic":{"title":"Boris Johnson","slug":"boris-johnson","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/boris-johnson/"},{"name":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","links":{"relativeLink":"news/donald-trump","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump"},"section":{"title":"News","slug":"news"},"topic":{"title":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump/"},{"name":"nigel farage","slug":"nigel-farage","links":{"relativeLink":"news/nigel-farage","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nigel-farage","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nigel-farage"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nigel-farage/"},{"name":"GB News","slug":"gb-news","links":{"relativeLink":"news/gb-news","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gb-news","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gb-news"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gb-news/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

Chris Hope, “You watched the inauguration, where were you, were you in the Capital rotunda?”

Nigel Farage, “No.. No.. No.. Didn’t make the cut.. I had a good seat.. But.. No.. I mean look.. Frankly.. Err.. It.. You know”

Chris Hope, “I saw Boris Johnson in there, is he now the… pic.twitter.com/SsIEmMUodM

— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) January 21, 2025

Rapper Nelly is defending his decision to perform at President-elect Donald Trump’s Liberty Inaugural Ball on Monday amid backlash from social media users.

“I respect the office,” Nelly, whose real name is Cornell Haynes Jr., said during Saturday’s episode of the “Willie D. Live” podcast hosted by rapper William “Willie D” Dennis.

“This isn’t politics. The politics, for me, it’s over. He won. He’s the president. He’s the commander-in-chief of what I would like to say is the best country in the world.”

Nelly said that it’s “an honour” for him to “perform for the president of the United States, regardless of who is in office”.

“If President Biden would have asked me to perform, I would have performed. If Vice President Kamala Harris would have won and asked me to perform, I would have performed,” he declared.

After Dennis asked him directly if he is a “Trump supporter,” Nelly responded, “I support the office. I support the president of the United States, regardless of who’s in office. Regardless, I respect the office.”

“I’m not here to take up for Trump, I’m not here to take up for Republicans. I’m not here to take up for Democrats,” Nelly added.

The Dilemma musician admitted that he’s not saying that Trump “ain’t got some fucked up ways,” but told Dennis that “performing for somebody and voting for somebody is two different things.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Nelly, who said he grew up on a military base and has multiple family members who served, compared his forthcoming performance to that of military soldiers protecting their country.

“I’m not doing this for money, I’m doing this because it’s an honour. I respect the office. It doesn’t matter who is in office,” he said. “The same way that our men and women, our brothers and sisters who protect this country, have to go to war and have to put their life on the line for whoever is in office.”

Nelly added, “So if they can put their life on the line for whoever in office, I can damn sure perform.”

HuffPost has reached out to Nelly’s reps for comment.

Nelly’s comments on the backlash come after fellow rappers Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross and Soulja Boy also faced criticism for reportedly performing at Trump’s Crypto Ball in Washington, D.C., on Friday.

Watch Nelly’s interview on the “Willie D. Live” podcast below.

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="YouTube" data-component-id="8161" data-component-props="{"itemType":"video","index":19,"contentIndexByType":2,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

","type":"video","meta":{"author":"Willie D Live","author_url":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZbPLZcwiPab9TBj7-4DZBQ","cache_age":86400,"description":"EXCLUSIVE!!! NELLY RESPONDS TO BACKLASH FOR PERFORMING AT TRUMP’S INAUGURATION \r\n\r\nGrammy Award-winning artist Nelly, known for his global hit \"Hot In Herre,\" is set to perform at the Inaugural Liberty Ball, one of three official inaugural Trump celebrations on Monday and some of his fans are not happy. Nelly goes live with Willie D to address the backlash and explain why he agreed to perform.","options":{"_cc_load_policy":{"label":"Closed captions","value":false},"_end":{"label":"End on","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"_start":{"label":"Start from","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"click_to_play":{"label":"Hold load & play until clicked","value":false}},"provider_name":"YouTube","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/e7f9nozS1gw/maxresdefault.jpg","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"EXCLUSIVE!!! NELLY RESPONDS TO BACKLASH FOR PERFORMING AT TRUMP’S INAUGURATION","type":"video","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7f9nozS1gw","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"678e1e14e4b099ed401ca0a5","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/nelly-addresses-backlash-over-his-performance-at-trumps-inauguration-ball_uk_678e1e14e4b099ed401ca0a5","entryTagsList":"donald-trump,nelly,@us_huffpost_now,@widget-imported","sectionSlug":"entertainment","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.entertainment","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"8b034f64-513c-4987-b16f-42d6008f7feb","clickToPlayPlayer":"5a777b9b-81fe-41a6-8302-59e9953ee8a2","videoPagePlayer":"19654b65-409c-4b38-90db-80cbdea02cf4"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"https://img.connatix.com/6ce64146-9385-4c23-be55-350a59576ad5/1_th.jpg?crop=629:354,smart&width=629&height=354&format=jpeg&quality=60&fit=crop","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":4},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":1},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"678e1e14e4b099ed401ca0a5","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","links":{"relativeLink":"news/donald-trump","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump"},"relegenceId":2789214,"section":{"title":"News","slug":"news"},"topic":{"title":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/donald-trump/"},{"name":"Nelly","slug":"nelly","links":{"relativeLink":"news/nelly","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nelly","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nelly"},"relegenceId":1096561,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nelly/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

[embedded content]