How this UK group got a giant baby Trump balloon approved to fly over London

Originally published by SacBee.com on July 5, 2018

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Photo credit: Trump Baby crowdfunder campaign.

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. No, it’s a giant Donald Trump baby?

A balloon of Donald Trump in the form of a baby – complete with diaper, signature hair and cell phone in hand – is set to be flown over London near the United Kingdom Parliament during the president’s visit with UK Prime Minister Theresa May on July 13. This, after the protest was approved by London’s mayor Sadiq Khan Thursday, according to a report from CNN.

The balloon was created by “Trump Baby” and backed by 1,338 supporters on crowdfunder.co.uk. The fundraiser had earned more than £20,190 (about $26,696.11) by late Thursday. The balloon is described as a six-meter tall “inflatable orange baby with tiny hands.”

According to Vox, the balloon was also approved by the National Air Traffic Service and Metropolitan Police and will be tethered to the ground as it flies 98 feet above the ground in Parliament Square Garden.

A petition, by “Trump Baby” creator Leo Murray to allow the balloon to be flown was featured on 38 Degrees, a UK online petition site, and had 10,573 signatures as of this report. The goal was 15,000 signatures, but the more than 10,000 were enough to win over the mayor.

The inspiration for protest via the balloon, according to Murray, is that, “moral outrage is water off a duck’s back to Trump, but he really seems to hate it when people make fun of him.”

CNN reported that a spokesperson for the mayor said, “The Mayor supports the right to peaceful protest and understands that this can take many different forms. His city operations team have met with the organizers and have given them permission to use Parliament Square Garden as a grounding point for the blimp.”

According to BBC, Trump and Khan have not been fans of one another, having several Twitter wars, including one regarding the attack on the London Bridge in June of last year.

About Daniel Wilson

Daniel has been a writer for over 25 years and recently earned his Bachelor's degree in journalism. Portfolio: www.dwilsonjourno.com.
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