British Prime Minister Theresa May takes the hand of President Donald Trump as they walk up red-carpeted steps to enter Blenheim Palace for a black tie dinner in Blenheim, England, Thursday, July 12,... (Associated Press) 
 
 British Prime Minister Theresa May takes the hand of President Donald Trump as they walk up red-carpeted steps to enter Blenheim Palace for a black tie dinner in Blenheim, England, Thursday, July 12, 2018. (Will Oliver/Photo via AP) (Associated Press) 
 
 LONDON (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump lobbed a verbal hand grenade into Theresa May's carefully constructed plans for Brexit, saying Thursday that the British leader had wrecked the country's exit from the European Union and likely "killed" chances of a free-trade deal with the United States. 
 
 Trump, who is making his first presidential visit to Britain, told The Sun newspaper he had advised May on how to conduct Brexit negotiations, "but she didn't listen to me." 
 
 "She should negotiate the best way she knows how. But it is too bad what is going on," the president said. 
 
 The Rupert Murdoch-owned tabloid published an interview with Trump as May was hosting him at a black-tie dinner at Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Britain's World War II Prime Minister Winston Churchill — the leader who coined the term "special relationship" for the trans-Atlantic bond. 
 
 The Sun said the interview was conducted Thursday in Brussels, before Trump traveled to Britain. His remarks on Brexit came the same day May's government published long-awaited proposals for Britain's relations with the EU after it leaves the bloc next year. 
 
 The document proposes keeping Britain and the EU in a free market for goods, with a more distant relationship for services. 
 
 The plan has infuriated fervent Brexit supporters, who think sticking close to the bloc would limit Britain's ability to strike new trade deals around the world. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Brexit Secretary David Davis both quit the government this week in protest. 
 
 Trump came down firmly on the side of the Brexiteers. He said Johnson, May's now ex-foreign secretary, "would be a great prime minister. I think he's got what it takes." 
 
 Meanwhile, Trump said what May proposed on Brexit would hurt the chances of a future trade deal between the U.K. and the United States. 
 
 "If they do a deal like that, we would be dealing with the European Union instead of dealing with the U.K., so it will probably kill the deal," Trump said. 
 
 He said "the deal she is striking is a much different deal than the one the people voted on." 
 
 In fact, much of Britain's division over Brexit — which has split the governing Conservative party and the public at large — stems from the June 2016 referendum on withdrawing from the EU not including language about would come next. 
 
 May's government is trying to satisfy Britons who voted for their country to leave the bloc, but to set an independent course without hobbling businesses, security agencies and other sectors that are closely entwined with the EU. 
 
 May insisted earlier Thursday that her plan was exactly what Britons had voted for in the 2016 referendum. 
 
 "They voted for us to take back control of our money, our law and our borders," she said. "That is exactly what we will do." 
 
 Trump's undiplomatic attack on May, his host, will likely raise the temperature around an already controversial visit. Thousands of people are expected to protest against the president in London on Friday, when a 20-foot (6-meter) balloon depicting the president as a screaming baby will be flown near Parliament. 
 
 May and Trump are scheduled to hold talks and a joint news conference on Friday. 
 
 Trump's interview easily could overshadow the government's attempt to lay out plans for what it calls a "principled and pragmatic" Brexit. 
 
 Britain is currently part of the EU's single market — which allows for the frictionless flow of goods and services among the 28 member states — and its tariff-free customs union for goods. That will end after the U.K. leaves the bloc in March. 
 
 The plans laid out Thursday in a 98-page government paper gave Britain's most detailed answer yet to the question of what will replace them. 
 
 Under the blueprint, Britain would stick to a "common rulebook" with the EU for goods and agricultural products in return for free trade, without tariffs or border customs checks. Such an approach would avoid disruption to automakers and other manufacturers that source parts from multiple countries. 
 
 The government said Britain would act "as if in a combined customs territory" with the EU, using technology at its border to determine whether goods from third countries were bound for Britain or the EU, and charging the appropriate tariffs in those cases. 
 
 Britain says that will solve the problem of maintaining an open border between Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K., and EU member Ireland. 
 
 Free trade would not apply to services, which account for 80 percent of the British economy. The government said that would give Britain "freedom to chart our own path," though it would mean less access to EU markets than there is now. 
 
 The plan also seeks to keep Britain in major EU agencies, including the European Aviation Safety Agency, the European Medicines Agency and the police agency Europol. 
 
 When the U.K. leaves the EU, it will end the automatic right of EU citizens to live and work in Britain. But Britain said EU nationals should be able to travel visa-free to Britain for tourism or "temporary business," and there should be measures allowing young people and students to work and study in Britain. 
 
 Other elements likely to anger Brexit-backers are Britain's willingness to pay the EU for access to certain agencies and the suggestion some EU citizens could continue to work in Britain visa-free. 
 
 Pro-Brexit Conservative lawmaker Jacob Rees-Mogg colorfully described the plan as "the greatest vassalage since King John paid homage to Phillip II at Le Goulet in 1200." 
 
 Pro-EU lawmakers, in contrast, think the proposed post-Brexit ties with the bloc are not close enough. ||||| LONDON/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump would like a quick trade deal with Britain once Brexit is finished, the U.S. ambassador to Britain said on Friday ahead of a presidential visit to London next week that will keep Trump largely away from planned mass protests. 
 
 U.S. President Donald Trump walks from Air Force One as he arrives in Great Falls, Montana, U.S., July 5, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts 
 
 Trump arrives in Britain on Thursday after a NATO summit in Belgium that could turn contentious over the U.S. leader’s insistence that allies pay more for their defense and amid trade disputes between Washington and Europe. 
 
 U.S. Ambassador to Britain Woody Johnson painted trade as a potential bright spot in the strong “special relationship” between Britain and the United States, which he said Trump intended to strengthen. 
 
 “He would love to do a bilateral trade deal and he is really ready to step up on that the minute we get the go ahead to do it,” Johnson said, adding that U.S. government agencies were already looking at how to put a deal together. 
 
 Less of a bright spot for Trump, whose mother hailed from Scotland, will be the protesters awaiting him in London. More than 50,000 people have signed up to demonstrate against Trump’s perceived racism, sexism, and his treatment of migrants. A counter-gathering to welcome him is also planned. 
 
 The president will steer clear of the demonstrations. 
 
 He will hold talks with Prime Minister Theresa May at her 16th-century manor house, meet Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle and attend a black-tie dinner at the home of former World War Two leader Winston Churchill - all outside London. 
 
 Johnson said the trip was not planned to avoid the protests. Trump has shown irritation before at protests in the United States. 
 
 A spokeswoman for May said the British people were looking forward to his visit. 
 
 “We are looking forward to making sure the president has a chance to see and experience the UK beyond London and the south east,” she told reporters. 
 
 The visit comes at a testing time: May is battling to make a success of Brexit and keep her minority government together, while Trump is challenging Western assumptions about free trade and turning away from global institutions. 
 
 Britain regards its close ties with the United States, which it refers to as the special relationship, as a pillar of its foreign and trading policy as it prepares to leave the European Union. 
 
 But some Britons see Trump as crude, volatile and opposed to their values on a range of issues. Trump’s comments on militant attacks in Britain have sparked anger and he has often exchanged barbs on social media with London mayor Sadiq Khan. 
 
 Protesters are planning to fly a blimp over parliament portraying Trump as an orange, snarling baby during his visit after Khan approved a request for its use. 
 
 On his arrival on Thursday afternoon, the president will travel to Blenheim Palace, the 18th-century mansion where Churchill was born and spent most of his childhood, eight miles (12 km) north of Oxford, according to May’s office. 
 
 In the evening, May will host a black-tie dinner for Trump at the stately home that will be attended by about 100 business leaders from industries including finance, pharmaceuticals, defense and technology. 
 
 For the only time during his visit, Trump will then travel into London when he will stay overnight at the home of the U.S. ambassador in the center of the city. 
 
 On Friday, Trump and May will visit an undisclosed location to witness a display by British soldiers. 
 
 Trump will travel with May to Chequers, the prime minister’s official country residence. He will then go to meet the Queen at Windsor Castle, the family home of British kings and queens for almost 1,000 years. 
 
 Afterwards, the president will travel to Scotland, where he owns two golf courses. Trump’s wife, Melania, will have a separate itinerary and will be hosted by May’s husband Philip.
– President Trump lobbed a verbal hand grenade into Theresa May's carefully constructed plans for Brexit, saying Thursday that the British leader had wrecked the country's exit from the European Union and likely "killed" chances of a free-trade deal with the United States, per the AP. Trump, who is making his first presidential visit to Britain, told the Sun newspaper he had advised May on how to conduct Brexit negotiations, "but she didn't listen to me." The Rupert Murdoch-owned tabloid published an interview with Trump as May was hosting him at a black-tie dinner at Blenheim Palace. His remarks on Brexit came the same day May's government published long-awaited proposals for Britain's relations with the EU after it leaves the bloc. The document proposes keeping Britain and the EU in a free market for goods, with a more distant relationship for services. The plan has infuriated fervent Brexit supporters, who think sticking close to the bloc would limit Britain's ability to strike new trade deals around the world. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Brexit Secretary David Davis both quit the government this week in protest. Trump came down firmly on the side of the Brexiteers. He said Johnson "would be a great prime minister. I think he's got what it takes." Meanwhile, Trump said what May proposed on Brexit would hurt the chances of a future trade deal between the UK and the United States. "If they do a deal like that, we would be dealing with the European Union instead of dealing with the UK, so it will probably kill the deal," Trump said.