It was an unfamiliar feeling of relief: whatever may be wrong with America, at least no one is looking to Liz Truss to solve it
It is a common refrain among foreigners living in the US, one that comes round like clockwork whenever something bad happens: what are we doing here? During the Trump administration, after the supreme court overruled Roe v Wade, or in the wake of yet another school shooting, the choice to live in this country when there are better alternatives seems at best eccentric, at worst actively mad. It was an odd feeling, therefore, to glance across at Britain from the US this week and experience a powerful sense of relief. No matter how bad things are in the UK, they’re usually slightly better – more reasonable, less bonkers, however you want to phrase it – than in America. Not so now. Whatever may be wrong with the US, at least no one is looking to Liz Truss to solve it.
If we have been here before, it was never this bad. After the Brexit vote or during the lies and reversals of Partygate, Britain didn’t exactly shine on the international stage. Still, it benefited from certain comparisons. Parallels drawn between Donald Trump and Boris Johnson inevitably flattered the British prime minister. Unlike Trump, it was said, Boris Johnson wasn’t actually stupid. And while he might have been venal, untrustworthy and a habitual liar, he did at least stop short of inciting a mob to invade parliament and overthrow British democracy.
Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist
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