Where Responsive and Responsible Representation Collide: How Mainstream UK & Australian Politicians Deal with Trump

The UK and Australia are both traditional defence and trade allies of the United States. However, the erratic behaviour of the current Trump administration has upset the western international order. The current centre-left governments in both countries face a tricky trade-off between electorates that do not view Trump favourably and a responsibility to ensure their countries' security and economic prosperity by maintaining close relationships with the Trump administration. The centre-right opposition parties also face a dilemma - do they attack governments for being insufficiently close to a President who does not poll well among their electorates? This study examines how mainstream party politicians deal with this realpolitik dilemma by examining their discourse around Trump in their newsletters to constituents. MPs' constituency newsletters are highly individualised rather than just echoes of central party messaging, and reveal how MPs from mainstream parties in both government and opposition deal with this balance between responsive and responsible representation.