Donald Trump didn't call Theresa May after being elected, and the U.K. took notice
The United States and the United Kingdom have shared a "special relationship" since Winston Churchill first labeled it such in 1946. But President-elect Donald Trump might not have gotten that memo just yet: Trump reportedly made nine phone calls to various world leaders in his first 24 hours after being elected, but managed to leave U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May off his list.
Trump's snub was labeled an "embarrassing blow" to May by U.K. tabloid The Sun and led the London-based Daily Telegraph to wonder, "What special relationship?" The Guardian called the omission "an early setback" for the president-elect.
Adding insult to injury, among Trump's first phone calls were conversations with Ireland's Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who was invited to the White House for St. Patrick's Day, and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Trump also spoke with the leaders of Mexico, Israel, Egypt, Turkey, India, Japan, and South Korea.
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May has been a critic of Trump's, calling his proposed Muslim ban "divisive, unhelpful, and wrong" and having claimed Trump "does not understand the U.K. and what happens in the U.K." A Downing Street spokesman confirmed that a phone call between May and Trump is "being arranged now."
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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