A campaign with heated overtones of xenophobia and worries about the economy. Fiery personalities vowing change. A populace that narrowly chose a new political direction.

And now, widespread anger and regret that things haven't gone as advertised.

Of course, that describes the Brexit referendum and its aftermath. But it also could describe the campaign and presidency of Donald Trump, whose election came five months after British voters approved Brexit.

At the time, commentators said the two movements closely mirrored each other, and that Mr Trump's election reflected the same dissatisfaction that some British voters felt.

"Believe me. This is Brexit times five. You watch what's going to happen," Mr Trump said a month before his election in November 2016.

But, as the Brexit process dissolves in chaos, the timing could not be worse for Mr Trump as attention begins to turn to the 2020 election race.

Brexit's woes are bad timing for Donald Trump. ( ABC News: Lincoln Rothall )

Trump is relatively quiet on Brexit

Just as Brexit philosophically helped propel Mr Trump to victory, a smooth separation of Britain and the EU would also justify many of the bold moves he said he would achieve as US president.

That helps explain why Mr Trump has been relatively silent as the Brexit drama plays on repeat in the British parliament.

In recent days, he has uncharacteristically laid off Theresa May, even though he is willing to criticise every other world and American political leader, whether living or dead.

On Friday, in fact, he called Mrs May "a very nice lady. She's a friend of mine."

That reflected the warmth he displayed for her in early encounters during his administration, including multiple instances where they held hands . It wasn't always clear whether she was assisting him, or he her, as he later claimed.

On Friday, he added, "She's strong, she's tough and she's in there fighting".

After May, who's next?

Always looking to the future, however, Mr Trump also had friendly words for Boris Johnson, the former London mayor who could succeed Mrs May if she goes.

Earlier in March, Mr Trump expressed obvious disappointment that Brexit seemed to be on the rocks. Mr Trump claimed that he had given Mrs May advice on how to negotiate, that she had not listened and that everything could have been done differently.

"I hate to see everything being ripped apart now," he said.

Perhaps Mr Trump is treading carefully with Mrs May and Mr Johnson, given his British business interests.

Sorry, this video has expired Mrs May lists the "unenviable choices" left for MPs to decide between after the vote failed.

But just as Brexit itself has reflected American political sentiment, Mrs May's experience in what could be the end of her tenure is a preview of what Mr Trump might endure in the 20 months before Americans vote in the next presidential election.

Trump's own leadership is stumbling

Far from the "winning" that Mr Trump boasted he and his party would achieve, his administration has faced repeated battles in achieving his controversial goals.

The wall he vowed to build with Mexico is only beginning to come about because he issued an executive order stripping federal agencies of $1 billion in funds to provide the money.

Last week, he had to rescind one plan to take government funding away from the Special Olympics program, which provides athletic opportunities for disabled young people, after a bipartisan outcry over its unfairness.

To be sure, Mr Trump declared victory last week when an abridged version of the investigation by Robert Mueller into Russian interference in his election failed to show any wrong doing on his part.

Even so, the full report, said to be about 300 pages, has yet to be released, so Mr Trump's claims of complete exoneration cannot be supported.

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at APEC. ( Reuters: Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin )

Likewise, Mr Trump's party wasn't able to delivery many of his legislative goals while it controlled both the House and Senate.

Republicans lost control of the US House in last year's mid-term election, bolstering the political power of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who has proved a formidable opponent.

Why Trump needs Brexit to work

What Mr Trump has needed has been an example of success elsewhere to show that the supporters who put him in office were part of a growing global movement.

Instead, the one place that could have given him that foundation — Britain — has outstripped the United States in turmoil and uncertainty.

Back in 2016, Ali Burke, a pub owner in Marsgate, England, told American broadcaster NPR Radio she thought Brexit would curb the immigration she felt had overwhelmed the seaside town.

"You know, we've got to draw the line somewhere. And we have got to start putting our own country first. I do believe that," Ms Burke said.

Last week, Tim Parsons, a finance specialist in London, said he would support a second Brexit referendum.

"This country's in grave danger of shooting itself in the foot," he told NPR. "There was a vote. Nobody knew what they were voting for at the time. So I think it should be put back for another vote."

Time is running out

There may not be another Brexit vote. But barring some development, Mr Trump will face his own referendum in November 2020.

And this time, he will not have the groundswell of global anger to help carry him to victory.

The groundswell he has generated for himself could have the opposite effect.

Micheline Maynard is an American author and journalist.