But they are not alike.  Johnson is a literate, witty product of Britain's finest educational institutions, Eton and Oxford, who down-plays his erudition and upper class roots.  Trump is just the opposite.  But both are consummate entertainers, which is essential in today's TV-driven politics.

Trump and Johnson are allowed political license to act outrageously and say taboo things that would get other politicians kicked out of office.  Last week, in a threat barely noticed by US media, Trump boasted to Pakistan's leader, Imran Khan, that he could kill ten million people in Afghanistan if he really wanted to and end the 18- year old war there.  The lapdog US media barely noticed this genocidal threat by a leader whose grip on reality appears to be weakening.