Trump's name spotted in Johnson's Biden congratulations
Keen-eyed political observers have noticed an unusual feature in a tweet from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson congratulating U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on his election victory: the ghost of an alternative message congratulating Donald Trump
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Keen-eyed political observers on Tuesday noticed an unusual feature in a tweet from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson congratulating U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on his election victory: the ghost of an alternative message congratulating Donald Trump
The words “Trump” and “second term” could be seen faintly in the background of the message, which was sent Saturday from the prime minister's Twitter account shortly after Biden was declared the winner of the U.S. presidential election.
The British government blamed a technical glitch.
“As you’d expect, two statements were prepared in advance for the outcome of this closely contested election,” the government said in a statement. “A technical error meant that parts of the alternative message were embedded in the background of the graphic.”
Johnson had a warm relationship with Trump, a supporter of Brexit, despite the two leaders’ differences on major issues such as climate change and the Iran nuclear deal.
The message sent by Johnson on Saturday said: “Congratulations to Joe Biden on his election as president of the United States and to Kamala Harris on her historic achievement. The U.S. is our most important ally and I look forward to working closely together on our shared priorities, from climate change to trade and security.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.