While the U.S. president wasted no time in using the deadly attacks in London on Saturday to push his own political agenda, Brits wasted no time in responding accordingly.
In the hours that followed the attacks that have so far left seven people dead, the POTUS fired out a series of tweets, one urging the courts to allow him to enforce his “travel ban” and another complaining about the lack of a “gun debate” because the assailants had used “knives and a truck.” In another, he criticized London Mayor Sadiq Khan for a statement in which he said there was “no reason to be alarmed.”
The online reaction from across the Atlantic was largely less than positive.
Among the most notable figures to respond was Armando Iannucci, the creator and former showrunner of Veep, who used Twitter to describe Donald Trump as a “stuffed bear,” advising him to “sit the shit down and shut the shit up.”
You know nothing about our capital city and our Mayor, you stuffed bear, so sit the shit down and shut the shit up. https://t.co/YzkHOcKb1O
— Armando Iannucci (@Aiannucci) June 4, 2017
Elsewhere, Hayley Squires, the BAFTA-nominated star of Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winning I, Daniel Blake and recipient of the British Independent Film Awards’ most promising newcomer award, labeled Trump a “pure sickness.”
You’re a sickness mate. A pure sickness. You and your mad followers could never comprehend the grace and humanity of Londoners. Vulgar man. https://t.co/482kfLrf9n
— Hayley Squires (@hayleySsquires) June 4, 2017
Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, meanwhile, replied to the president’s tweet attacking the London mayor by calling him an “alarmist blowhard.”
It’s called ‘leadership’, Donald. The terrorists were dead 8 minutes after police got the call. If we need an alarmist blowhard, we’ll call. https://t.co/NUiy9j4fBt
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 4, 2017
As it happens, Trump had actually taken Khan’s quotes entirely out of context. In his statement, the mayor was warning London residents not to be “alarmed” if they saw more armed police on the streets of London over the coming days.
