Trump and the Crown: Brits unsettled over U.S. president getting royal treatment
Planned state visit subject of protest, U.K. Commons debate today
Forget the news conference for a moment. One of Donald Trump's most scrutinized performances is still to come — possibly by summer's end — and it will involve the Queen.
In contrast to last week, the U.S. president's performance in the upcoming state visit to the United Kingdom will, presumably, be highly scripted according to exacting protocol.
But it has inspired much more than raised eyebrows: protests, petitions, a move to sack the Speaker of the House of Commons and a police warning the visit could require thousands of officers on the streets.
The crown jewel of official visits is a highly coveted affair. There is no higher honour for a visiting head of state.
And so, for the critics here, there is no higher offence than offering one to Donald Trump.
Debate and protests today
Their objections stem from possible "embarrassment" to Queen Elizabeth over Trump's comments about women and over his attempt to ban citizens of certain Muslim countries from entering the U.S.
Even the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, added his voice Sunday to those calling for the red carpet to be pulled out from under the U.S. president because of the so-called migrant ban.
I don't think Trump deserves to be allowed out of the U.S.A., to be honest.- Chris Bryant, Labour MP
The matter was debated in the Commons Monday, and thousands of people gathered outside Parliament to show their displeasure.
The government, however, has ruled out a recall. It says Trump has accepted the invitation delivered last month in Washington by Prime Minister Theresa May on behalf of the Queen (of course, on the advice of the government). The quicker-than-usual invitation "reflects the importance of the relationship," it said in a statement.
'Desperate for friends'
Critics are unconvinced.
"You don't normally invite somebody 'round for Christmas with your relatives the first time you meet them," Chris Bryant, a Labour MP and former minister who once oversaw state visits, said in an interview.
"Because we're leaving the EU, [Theresa May] is desperate for friends.… I don't think Trump deserves to be allowed out of the U.S.A., to be honest."
The petition before the House of Commons seeks to put a moratorium on a Trump state visit throughout his term, because having one would "cause embarrassment to Her Majesty the Queen." It does not object to normal, run-of-the-mill visits.
But it says Trump's "well-documented misogyny and vulgarity disqualifies him from being received by Her Majesty the Queen or the Prince of Wales."
1.85 million signatures
Any petition signed by 100,000 people is automatically referred for a Commons debate (though not usually a vote).
This one attracted 1.85 million signatures.
A competing petition, also to be debated today, says Trump should be invited for a state visit, "because he is the leader of a free world and U.K. is a country that supports free speech."
That one received more than 311,000 signatures.
Elaborate affairs
State visits, which are often organized here to help strengthen a relationship, are different from official visits in that the Queen is the host. They are such elaborate affairs they're planned well in advance.
"In the case of the American president, they've taken place usually in the first two or three years of a presidency," said Charles Anson, a former press secretary for the Queen.
But he added "there's room for pragmatism and visits can happen more quickly."
Trump received his invitation a rare one week after his inauguration. No exact date has been set, but it's reportedly to be late summer or early fall.
Mugabe, Suharto among past guests
The Queen has seen 109 state visits in her 65 years on the throne, including from controversial figures ranging from Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, to Indonesia's Suharto, to Italy's Silvio Berlusconi.
There is significant pomp and specific rituals involved in a state visit: a royal welcome, military ceremony, a review of the guard of honour, a procession to Buckingham Palace (possibly in a carriage), a formal state banquet with speeches and possibly (though not always) a speech at Westminster.
It is the possibility of the latter that landed the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, in hot water.
He told the Commons he would be opposed to a Trump speech at Westminster because it is not an "automatic right" but an "earned honour." He said he had already been strongly opposed to a Trump address before the "migrant ban" — and became only more so afterward.
Saving face?
It was enough to prompt one fellow Tory to table a motion of no-confidence in the Commons to have Bercow ousted for breaking the rule of speaker's neutrality.
Several reports here have suggested the visit has been shifted to later in the year to ensure it happens while Parliament is on break — to save face.
There have also been reports Trump might spend more time outside London than the average visitor. Neither could be independently confirmed.
Trump and the 'poor old Queen'
Meanwhile, today's debate on the petitions will not end in a vote. Instead, the government will respond in the Commons.
The U.K.'s Foreign and Commonwealth Office has already commented on the opposing petition, saying last week that Trump "should be extended the full courtesy of a state visit."
"We look forward to welcoming President Trump once dates and arrangements are finalised."
The petition was submitted by one Graham Guest, of Leeds, who later told the Independent newspaper that it was "a very incongruous thing, for this man, with all of the things he's said," to be photographed with the "poor old Queen."
Bryant, the Labour MP, says despite his opposition to the visit it isn't the Queen he's worried about.
"The Queen's pretty robust," he said. "She's met some dodgy figures over the years."
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