Trump’s final two years: Is the UK ready?

Listen on Spotify Apple Music Amazon Music After a Democratic wave in the U.S. midterms, Westminster is wondering whether Trump’s domestic setbacks could make him more unpredictable on the world stage — and how Britain should handle the final two years of his presidency.

Patrick Baker speaks to Simon McDonald, the former top civil servant at the Foreign Office, who takes us inside Britain’s diplomatic response to the 2018 midterms and explains what lessons can be learned from Trump’s first term. Then Ed Roman, who recently left his role as director of communications at the British Embassy in Washington, reveals how diplomats are already preparing for the next U.S.

president — and how to court Trump’s potential successors without upsetting the man currently in the Oval Office. And POLITICO’s senior foreign and defence correspondent Esther Webber explains why she thinks Andy Burnham will take a different approach to the Trump White House than his predecessor.