New U.S. Embassy derided by President Trump opens in Britain

by Dramelin 5:00 AM 0 comments

LONDON — The new U.
embassy in Britain, described by President Trump as a "bad deal,” opened its doors to the public in the capital Tuesday.
Trump said last weekthat he canceled a planned trip to London because he didn`t want to cut the ribbon at the high-tech $1.
The embassy moved from Mayfair in central London — where it had been since 1960 — to Nine Elms, a former industrial area on the south bank of the River Thames that is currently being regenerated.
Woody Johnson, the U.
ambassador to Britain, said the move was necessary for security reasons after 9/11.
  "Reason I canceled my trip to London is that I am not a big fan of the Obama Administration having sold perhaps the best located and finest embassy in London for `peanuts,` only to build a new one in an off location for 1.
2 billion dollars," Trump tweeted late Thursday.
Wanted me to cut ribbon-NO!" More: Trump calls off trip to London, blaming Obama for Bush embassy decision More: New $1 billion U.
Embassy in Britain: Things to know However, Trump`s tweet misrepresented the history of the U.
 According to the State Department and the U.
Embassy itself, it was the administration of President George W.
Bush — not Obama — that decided to build a new embassy in 2006 and chose the new location in 2008.
  The billion-dollar price tag is typical of an embassy construction of that size.
Officials also said that it was financed entirely by the sale of other U.
property in England — not new taxpayer money.
 Ambassador Johnson said it didn`t cost U.
taxpayers "a cent.
"  British newspapers reported that fears of mass protests had put a stop to the trip.
A poll from last year found that about 4% of Britain`s population — roughly 2.
5 million people — would protest a state visit by Trump.
  The Madame Tussauds waxwork attraction in London moved its model of Trump to the embassy after Trump`s tweet, where members of the public gleefully posed with it.
Contributing: Gregory Korte in Washington and Kim Hjelmgaard in London.
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