Donald Trump is a gift for the progressive narrative

With all the awfulness in Britain this year, it’s been easy to forget about what’s happening across the pond, which is some small comfort. Donald Trump’s travel ban came into effect last night. It is a more nuanced and reasonable version of the order he issued in March. Will it make much difference to security or, more pertinently, the rate of immigration from these countries? Who knows, but the damage from the earlier ban has already been done.

When I first saw the future president speaking at rallies, he appeared to me a left-wing person’s idea of what a right-wing man is – loud, confident, small-minded, Manichean in his world view, claiming to speak on behalf of the little people but clearly with his own agenda. He also represented the trend of conservatism dumbing-down but taken to its absurd conclusion. And yet he won, because when it comes down to it, people vote for politicians who are on their side.