Donald Trump predicted that Nigel Farage would ‘work well’ with Boris Johnson today as the Brexit Party leader made a surprise appearance at a US presidential event today.
The American leader hailed Mr Farage’s gains in May’s European Parliament election as he predicted he would work well with the new Tory leader and incoming UK prime minister.
Mr Farage had earlier laid down the gauntlet to Boris Johnson and challenged him to deliver on his ‘do or die’ Brexit pledge.
The Brexit Party leader said he wished Mr Johnson ‘well’ but questioned whether the next prime minister had the ‘courage’ to actually take the UK out of the EU without a deal on October 31.
Speaking at Turning Point USA’s Teen Student Action Summit 2019 in Washington today, Mr Trump singled out Mr Farage in the audience, saying: ‘I tell you what, he got 32 per cent of the vote from nowhere over in the UK.
‘He did a great job and I know he’s going to work well with Boris, they are going to do some tremendous things.’
Nigel Farage has challenged Boris Johnson to deliver on his ‘do or die’ Brexit pledge
Speaking in Washington today, Mr Trump singled out Mr Farage, saying: ‘He did a great job and I know he’s going to work well with Boris, they are going to do some tremendous things’
Mr Johnson’s vow to get Britain out of the bloc by the current Halloween deadline with or without an agreement dominated the Tory leadership campaign against Jeremy Hunt.
The former foreign secretary doubled down on his promise today as he was elected the new leader of the Conservative Party, telling activists: ‘We are going to get Brexit done on October 31.’
Mr Johnson now has no room for manoeuvre on the Brexit deadline having ruled out so strongly signing off on another delay to the UK’s divorce from Brussels.
And Mr Farage is already putting the pressure on to ensure there is no backsliding from the man who will take over from Theresa May as prime minister tomorrow.
Mr Farage tweeted shortly after the result was announced:
Brexit party leader Nigel Farage said: ‘I wish Boris Johnson well as Prime Minister with his do or die pledge to deliver Brexit on October 31st.
‘Does he have the courage to deliver?’
Mr Johnson, pictured today after he was elected as the new Tory leader, told Conservative activists: ‘We are going to get Brexit done on October 31’
Mr Farage also said: ‘It is do or die, not just for Brexit but for the future of the Conservative Party.’
Whether Mr Johnson is able to deliver on his pledge is likely to have major ramifications for his and Mr Farage’s political futures.
The Brexit Party surged to victory in the European Parliament elections earlier this year as they were fuelled by disllusioned Leave voters angry at the Conservative government’s failure to take the UK out of the EU.
Mr Johnson believes delivering Brexit on time will see those voters return to the Tories and help propel him to victory at a future general election.
But should Brexit be delayed again Mr Farage’s star will likely continue to rise and potentially make his party a major player in Westminster when the country next goes to the polls.
Speaking after he was named the new Tory leader, Mr Johnson said delivering Brexit would wake up the ‘slumbering giant’ of Britain.
He said: ‘Do you feel daunted? I don’t think you look remotely daunted to me.
‘And I think that we know we can do it and that the people of this country are trusting in us to do it and we know that we will do it.
‘And we know the mantra of the campaign that has just gone by, in case you have forgotten it and you probably have, it is deliver Brexit, unite the country and defeat Jeremy Corbyn – and that is what we are going to do.
‘We are all going to defeat Jeremy Corbyn.
‘I know that some wag has already pointed out that deliver, unite and defeat was not the perfect acronym for an election campaign, since unfortunately it spells dud – but they forgot the final “e” my friends, “e” for energise.
‘And I say to all the doubters, dude, we are going to energise the country.
‘We are going to get Brexit done on October 31. We are going to take advantage of all the opportunities that it will bring in a new spirit of can-do.
‘And we are once again going to believe in ourselves and what we can achieve.’
Mr Johnson’s path to getting Brexit done by October 31 appears fraught with difficulty.
His first preference is to renegotiate a better deal with the EU but the bloc has insisted the terms of divorce cannot be changed.
His fall back is to take Britain out of the bloc without a deal but such a strategy is likely to be opposed by a majority of MPs.