Can opposites Trump and Starmer discover frequent floor?

Mr Guidelines and Mr Break The Guidelines.

The Lawyer and the person with the prison conviction.

The human rights barrister and the brash New York actual property tycoon.

To place it gently, Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump are fairly totally different characters – and that’s earlier than we even get on to speaking about insurance policies.

The prime minister’s personal colleagues have known as him “Mr Guidelines” as a method of summing up the essence of his character, what makes him tick.

There may be even a reputation for this that teachers have used – “the juridifcation of politics” – that means “a reliance upon authorized and quasilegal, i.e. guidelines, norms, conventions, procedures, means to deal with substantive issues of public coverage.”

The factor is, to state the plain, the person now within the Oval Workplace is the polar reverse on just about each single phrase of that.

However maybe, some ponder, all this should not be overstated.

“Most overseas leaders annoy Trump to some extent,” one shut observer advised me.

The important thing, many imagine, can be coping with the brand new president in a method that he likes and, so the speculation goes, may go.

So out with long-winded displays of overseas coverage trivia and in with concepts that both contribute to his ‘America First’ agenda, whereas securing wins for the UK too, or assist the President cement his place in historical past maybe within the Center East or Ukraine.

We are able to anticipate the prime minister to fly to Washington fairly quickly to fulfill President Trump on the White Home.

It’ll imply Sir Keir and International Secretary David Lammy will have the ability to cease always referring again to the hen dinner they’d at Trump Tower in New York in September of final 12 months once they met Trump for the primary time.

Exactly when Sir Keir finds himself on a airplane over the Atlantic, and which leaders are invited earlier than him, can be pored over – and there are clearly some, akin to Georgia Meloni, the Prime Minister of Italy and the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, who’re ideologically a lot nearer to the president than Sir Keir will ever be.

The timing most likely issues much less, past the symbolism, than what comes out of the assembly.

So what may discover itself on the agenda?

Ukraine, commerce, defence spending, the Center East, local weather change, the Chagos Islands, to call half a dozen.

The Chagos Islands is a possible early flashpoint, or at the very least second of awkwardness.

The UK’s plan at hand over the archipelago within the Indian Ocean – which is house to a joint US/UK army base – to Mauritius has been placed on maintain for President Trump to try.

On Ukraine, the UK’s posture is obvious and was pointedly doubled down on by the prime minister simply days earlier than President Trump’s inauguration.

Sir Keir was in Kyiv to signal a 100-year pact with the nation at simply the purpose a brand new president takes workplace who has promised to finish the battle in a short time, which many suppose would depart Russia trying just like the victor.

Might President Trump and incoming Secretary of State Marco Rubio promote a deal extensively seen as unhealthy for Ukraine? And, would Russian President Vladimir Putin have an interest within the battle ending now, or hope to hold on to safe extra territory?

And on commerce, how does the UK keep away from the potential of crippling tariffs, import taxes, being imposed by America, as President Trump has threatened to do on associates and foes alike?

Authorities sources right here within the UK discuss up what they see as “the alignment of priorities” between London and Washington on getting our economies rising.

America is the UK’s largest buying and selling associate, accounting for almost 18% of complete UK commerce.

The factor is tariffs may scupper any progress and Downing Road must hope that it could discuss the president out of them.

And if President Trump calls for huge will increase in defence spending, can the UK afford it?

Maybe an argument might be made that tariffs would make paying for defence tougher.

Then there are the ideas and social media posts of the president’s buddy Elon Musk, which have been extraordinarily hostile in the direction of the prime minister for months, solely easing mildly final week when the federal government set out its response to little one sexual exploitation.

In Sir Keir’s again pocket, keep in mind, is the prospect of one other state go to for President Trump and the First Woman.

President Trump’s mum was born and grew up on the Isle of Lewis – his affection for the UK is real, as is his love of the Royal Household.

Do not be stunned if that invite will get delivered to the White Home ultimately. The query can be when does that card get performed?

It has change into a predictable to say that President Trump is unpredictable, as a result of it isn’t solely true, however an understatement.

The world goes to really feel fairly totally different – and that distinction begins now.