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By PATRICK BAKER
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Peter Mandelson, the new British ambassador to the United States, has finally taken up the daunting challenge of being the U.K.’s Trump whisperer. And it’s clear the man dubbed the prince of darkness will need to use every trick in his book to ensure the U.K. emerges unscathed – or even, perhaps, benefits – from Trump’s America First agenda.
This week on Westminster Insider, Patrick Baker speaks to some of Mandelson’s predecessors and those who know a thing or two about how to master Washington D.C., for their advice on how to make a success of the most prestigious diplomatic gig of all.
Britain’s former Ambassador to the U.S. under Obama, Peter Westmacott, is a man who knows how to throw a good party. He explains how to use the opulent British ambassador’s residence to bring in the great and the good of American politics and reflects on the personal nature of the relationships he formed.
Author Anthony Seldon evokes the historic power of the special relationship and details the British cultural assets diplomats have at their disposal for wooing the Washington elites.
Catherine Meyer — the wife of the late Christopher Meyer, who served as ambassador under Tony Blair — explains how she was often deployed to take advantage of the seating plan at glitzy downtown dinners in D.C., trying to coax a secret or two out of the notoriously tight-lipped Vice-President Dick Cheney.
Blair’s ambassador during the Iraq war, David Manning, recalls the intensity of being a wartime diplomat — and how he relied on close access to the Bush White House to make sure Britain’s voice was heard.
Kim Darroch, who served during the first Trump term before an abrupt leak-induced exit, explains how best to deal with any unexpected, early morning social media outbursts — and says it is vital to ensure you keep in with the billionaires upon whom Trump relies for economic advice.
John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, tells Patrick who he thinks has fared best with the US President and why (hint: it has something to do with golf) and says a safer choice might have been a career diplomat.
And Jenny Wright — formerly the embassy press adviser to recently-departed ambassador Karen Pierce — reveals how she and her team used a cup of tea to devastating diplomatic effect.
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