The political friendship between President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is back on track.
According to Politico, Johnson's Conservative Party's expected victory in Thursday's election, clears the way for his Brexit deal with the European Union — and a trade deal with the United States.
And that means the friendship that had been restrained before the vote in Britain, where Trump is unpopular, can resume, Politico reported.
Trump might even see a Johnson victory as a good sign for himself.
"I think [Trump] sees that when leaders that act and talk like him win, that he’ll see it as a proxy for him," Heather Conley, who served in the State Department's Europe division during the George W. Bush administration, told the news outlet.
The friendship started after Trump won in 2016 — before that, Johnson had been harshly critical, Politico reported.
But the outlet, citing an unnamed former White House official, noted Johnson realized the best way to get to Trump was through his top aides — particularly Stephen Miller, the anti-immigration firebrand and frequent Trump speechwriter.
"There were a few times when Boris Johnson would just come and meet, somewhat surreptitiously, with Stephen Miller and vice versa," an unnamed former White House official told Politico.
A Trump administration official said Johnson and Trump talk roughly once every other week now.
"They're buddies," the official said. "Probably his closest relationship."
That is in sharp contrast to Trump's relationship with Johnson's predecessor, Theresa May, whom Trump "loathes," the officials told Politico.
Trump has not even appeared to be upset at Johnson for being among the world leaders caught on camera mocking him during this month's NATO gathering.
"On policy grounds, [Johnson is] a lot closer to the continental Europeans than he is to Trump. That's the irony," Tom Wright, a foreign policy analyst at the Brookings Institution told Politico.
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