Badenoch says Trump deserved midterm defeat, condemns his ‘dirty’ politics

British Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has criticised US President Donald Trump, saying he “deserved to be thrashed” in the midterm elections because of his protectionist policies, handling of the Iran war, strained relations with allies and “dirty” political style. Describing the Republican defeat as “entirely self-inflicted”, she questioned Trump’s commitment to conservative principles and condemned his treatment of journalists, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, while expressing openness to Kamala Harris’s presidency.

British Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, has said United States President Donald Trump “deserved to be thrashed” in the midterm elections, accusing him of abandoning conservative principles and adopting a “dirty” style of politics.

In an interview with The Independent Editor-in-Chief, Geordie Greig, published on Saturday, Badenoch criticised Trump’s handling of the Iran war, tariffs, threats against Canada and Greenland, and strained relations with allies, including the United Kingdom.

She described the Republican Party’s electoral defeat as “entirely self-inflicted”, adding that “Voters want results.”

Explaining her criticism, Badenoch said: “Yeah. He has not been acting in the way that I would consider conservative. Where is the push for free markets and better trade… rather than protectionism, America first, the squabbling with allies? That’s not what conservatives do.”

According to The Independent, she also condemned Trump’s personal attacks and described his treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House as “awful”.

Badenoch further revealed she would have been comfortable with Kamala Harris winning the 2024 presidential election.