Exclusive:
Despite a 3,500 mile trip and braving freezing temperatures, the weather has sidelined the plans of Suella Braverman, ex-Prime Minister Liz Truss, Priti Patel, and Tobias Ellwood
Donald Trump’s right-wing British supporters have been left out in the cold after the decision to move his inauguration indoors left them without a seat at today’s swearing-in.
Despite travelling more than 3,500 miles and braving freezing temperatures, the weather has now sidelined the plans of Suella Braverman, ex-Prime Minister Liz Truss, Priti Patel, and Tobias Ellwood.
The cast of “Tory Trump toadies” will now be shut out of the oath-taking that has been moved to the Capitol’s Rotunda, which can only hold less than 600 people. They will instead be forced to watch today’s ceremony on television.
The prominent MAGA loyalists, including Laurence Fox and Ant Middleton, all travelled to Washington to attend the inauguration on the Capitol lawn. However, on Friday, only a few hundred of the 220,000 ticket holders were told they would be allowed inside to see Trump sworn in due to the weather. It is unknown where Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson will now be seated.
Former Home Secretary Braverman led the right-wing exodus to Washington, arriving on Saturday clad in a “Make America Great Again” hat. When asked if Trump had personally invited her, she deflected, saying, “I’m very much looking forward to attending the rally tomorrow.”
She dismissed her travel companion Fox as a coincidence, quipping, “We happened to be on the same plane.” Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Truss faced widespread ridicule after posting a photo of herself in DC, also in a MAGA hat, with the caption: “The new Donald Trump term can’t come soon enough. The West needs it.”
She was pictured wearing a blue coat and a red MAGA cap with social media users comparing her to Paddington Bear. Meanwhile, Fox tweeted: “It’s so wonderful to be here. The optimism is everywhere. We can have this too. All you have to do is speak up and believe. MAGA.”
Among other notable attendees was ex-Special Forces soldier Middleton, reportedly eyeing a Reform UK-backed bid for London Mayor. Middleton was joined by Labour defector Kate Hoey and Ian Paisley Jr., a longtime Trump family ally, at a party held close to the White House on Friday night.
For many, the trip has become an expensive photo-op, with little to show but social media posts and MAGA merchandise. The ceremony’s relocation also fueled speculation, with some questioning whether the move was prompted by security concerns rather than the freezing weather.
Washington-based Brit James Buckley said: “It’s been an expensive trip for Trump’s Tory toadies. They must be fuming. To come all this way to see him sworn in only to find out they’ll have the same view if they had stayed at home. Much cheaper.”
