Donald Trump calls Kevin Rudd ‘nasty’ and says he ‘won’t be there long’ as Australia’s ambassador to US
In interview with Nigel Farage, Trump says ‘I hear he’s not the brightest bulb’ when asked about Rudd
Josh Butler
Wed 20 Mar 2024 07.17 CET
Donald Trump has taken a swipe at the former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, calling him “nasty” and claiming he “won’t be there long” as Australian ambassador to the United States.
But the Australian foreign minister, Penny Wong, said the government would retain Rudd as American ambassador if Trump won November’s presidential election, backing him as doing “an excellent job”. Anthony Albanese, who appointed Rudd as ambassador, accused the Coalition opposition of a “cheap shot” attack over the comments, as the Liberal leader, Peter Dutton, said the government now needed to “repair” the US relationship.
Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, made the comments in an interview with the former British conservative politician Nigel Farage on GB News overnight.
Rudd, before becoming ambassador in March 2023, had been scathing of Trump. In a tweet still available on his X account, Rudd called Trump “The most destructive president in history”.
“He drags America and democracy through the mud. He thrives on fomenting, not healing, division. He abuses Christianity, church and bible to justify violence.” In another tweet, he called Trump “a traitor to the West”.
Asked by Farage about some of those criticisms, Trump at first appeared to not know who Rudd was, before then insulting him several times.
“I don’t know. He won’t be there long if that’s the case,” Trump said, in a clip of a longer interview posted on social media on Wednesday.
“I don’t know much about him. I heard he was a little bit nasty. I hear he’s not the brightest bulb. But I don’t know much about him.
“But if he’s at all hostile, he will not be there long.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... ador-to-us