The writer is president and CEO of the Center for American Progress and a former adviser to President Joe Biden
When Andy Burnham secured a decisive by-election victory over Reform UK, he did more than just seal his path to No 10 Downing Street — he showed that the Labour Party can beat the populist right. But once he becomes prime minister, Burnham will face an even tougher test, this time on the foreign policy front: resetting a damaged relationship with the US.
In his second term, President Donald Trump has treated the UK as a subordinate to be bullied rather than an ally to be respected. He has threatened punishing tariffs on British goods and warned Sir Keir Starmer’s government to “be careful” over the digital services tax. After the White House demanded access to British military bases for Trump’s disastrous war in Iran, Starmer capitulated — despite having initially denied the request. When Trump dropped his papers at a meeting of the G7 and Starmer scurried to pick them up, we were presented with a perfect visual distillation of the nature of their relationship.