Trump says he blocked Sadiq Khan from state visit, calling London mayor 'one of the worst'

President Donald Trump said on board Air Force One that he blocked Sir Sadiq Khan from attending any events for the London mayor's state visit to the United States. The MAGA leader told reporters on the flight back to the United States that he didn't want Khan there and labeled him "one of the worst mayors in the world."

Trump, 79, said Khan had "wanted to be there" but that he "didn't want him" and that crime in the capital was "through the roof." "I just think, you know, I have a certain pride in London and the UK. My mother was born in Scotland, and when I see Mayor Khan do a bad job - the stabbings, the dirt and the filth - it's not the same. I didn't want him there." The Daily Mail has contacted Sir Sadiq's office for comment.

Sir Sadiq Khan had continued his bitter feud with Trump before the London-born leader’s arrival for a historic state visit, in a fresh attack writing in The Guardian. Khan said Trump's rhetoric "fanned the flames of divisive, far-right politics around the world" and argued that scapegoating minorities and deploying the military to diverse cities are actions not just inconsistent with Western values but "straight out of the autocrat's playbook." The Guardian piece arrived ahead of the state visit and reflected a long-running clash between the two men.

Earlier this year, during a stop in Scotland, Trump branded Khan a "nasty person" who had "done a terrible job" in his latest blast at the Labour mayor. Khan dismissed the jibes at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe as "water off a duck's back." He added that Trump, who he said is the leader of the free world and arguably the most powerful man in the world, still wields views about race and religion he rejects.

There is a documented history between Khan and Trump. In 2019, Trump called Khan a "stone cold loser" after Khan permitted a large inflatable Trump baby blimp to fly during Trump’s highly publicized state visit—the moment that crystallized a high-profile feud between the two. The two men have also clashed over comments dating back to 2016, when Trump challenged Khan to an IQ test after Khan criticized the president's Islam-related rhetoric.

The exchange underscores broader tensions tied to a visit that had been loaded with political symbolism, separating those who see such visits as ceremonial diplomacy from those who view it as a platform for political confrontations. Khan, who has often positioned himself against Trump’s approach to immigration and security, has repeatedly used international forums to publish criticisms of Trump’s rhetoric and policy framing. The events during the state visit and the surrounding remarks reflect a moment of overt strain between a former U.S. president and a prominent London official, with both sides continuing to frame the conversation around national identity, security and democratic norms.