Liz Truss provides speech to half-empty room at pro-Trump convention in Washington

Liz Truss accused Joe Biden of being “asleep at the wheel” as she spoke to a conference of die-hard Donald Trump supporters in Washington DC.

The failed former Prime Minister flew throughout the Atlantic yesterday to talk at CPAC, America’s largest right-wing convention – and all-but endorsed the previous President to return to energy.

“We have enabled Vladimir Putin by not taking action early enough, when he could have been stopped,” she instructed a half-empty room. “Instead of projecting strength – we know that dictators only respond to strength – we projected weakness, and that is what is being projected from the White House.”

She added: “Of course, we need a Republican back in the White House. We need it desperately.” Mr Trump is the agency favorite to be the Republican nominee for President – a place that may develop into much more safe if he defeats rival Nikki Haley in Saturday’s main election in her house state of South Carolina.

Ms Truss complained her failed premiership had been scuppered by a “backlash” from the media, the company world and “also from people that were meant to work for the government.” It comes after she used a column on the Fox News web site to the so-called “deep state” for sabotaging her 49-day stint in Downing Street.

“I’m not saying I’m an ideal individual, or I did all the pieces precisely proper,” she said. “But I confronted essentially the most almighty backlash for these conservative insurance policies that I put in place…With that stage of antagonism I merely was not capable of implement these reforms.”

She added: “Conservatives are actually working in a hostile setting, and we basically want an even bigger bazooka so as to have the ability to govern.”

Trump devotee Nigel Farage will address the faithful on Friday, with the former President himself set to headline the conference, giving a speech on Saturday.

Ms Truss is attempting to salvage her reputation across the pond after she was booted out of No10 when she crashed the economy. Ms Truss was forced out after just 49 days after she announced a tax-cutting bonanza, with giveaways for the super-rich.

The carnage despatched the pound tumbling and mortgage charges hovering – as pension funds got here near collapse. She needed to U-turn on practically all her plans and sacked her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, however was nonetheless compelled out by Tory MPs. She is the shortest-serving PM in British historical past.

Stateside she was greeted with well mannered applause from the skinny crowd – becoming a member of a line-up of audio system railing towards “wokeism”, immigration and monetary assist for Ukraine.

The speaker instantly earlier than Ms Truss was Dr. Eithan Haim, who’s below legal investigation after he used his place at a Texas Children’s hospital to leak non-public medical information of 20 younger individuals who had acquired therapy for gender dysphoria. “This problem that these people say they’re treating is not based in reality,” he instructed the cheering crowd, defending his leak to a right-wing web site as a part of his oath to “do no harm”.

And after her was Julie Kelly, who has described the January 6 revolt as an “inside job” supposed to “wage war” on American right-wingers.

In the exhibition corridor, downstairs from the auditorium, a raft of right-wing teams, retailers and politicians arrange stalls. They embody Patriot Mobile, which payments itself as America’s solely Christian Conservative Wireless telephone community and donates a portion of its income to “organisations that uphold conservative values”.

Attendees may purchase Make America Great Again hats in a spread of colors, from basic pink to pale pink. One model had a Trump-style wig hooked up to finish the look. The identical stall bought T-shirts for $30-40 every – some bearing Mr Trump’s notorious mugshot, others mocked up with a “FNN – Fake News Network” brand.

And a spread of purses have been on sale, together with one bejewelled bag within the form of a Magnum handgun. Also on sale have been “MAGA Hammocks”, which the proprietors stated “allow you to proudly express your honour and courage.”

Several organisations professed assist for these arrested and imprisoned for the January sixth revolt, with one group, declaring them “political prisoners.”

And one sales space promoted “Woke Tears Water” – a novelty drink stated to be made “from pure melted snowflake tears”.