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We’re not even a month into it and Donald Trump’s second presidency has stained everything from Greenland to paper straws and now, the British monarchy.
That’s right, not even the throne of King Charles is immune from Trump’s bizarre machinations, with one expert now warning that the monarch may be dragged into a row with the U.S. president. All because of Trump’s insistence on making Canada the 51st state — a claim he’s been repeatedly screaming from the mountaintops as if he were some pioneering explorer. As for where King Charles comes in, well, as Canada’s head of state, he risks being drawn into Trump’s fanciful annexation plans, at least according to BBC presenter Andrew Marr.
In Marr’s estimation, the King’s role as head of state, and Canada’s place in the broader British Commonwealth, means Charles does not have the luxury of simply ignoring Trump’s rhetoric against the country. “The British government may or may not try to stay neutral in Canada versus the US, but the monarch can’t,” Marr said (per The Independent). “It’s all a bit rum,” he added, which is the polite, British slang term for “royally messed up.”
Alongside Trump’s plans for annexing Canada — which included him mockingly calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a “governor” — Marr said the president’s general ire with the country may force intervention from King Charles. Trump’s now-postponed 25% tariff on Canadian imports, and Trudeau’s threat of retaliatory tariffs, might be particular areas for royal intervention, Marr claimed. “It’s conceivable the Canadian government may plead with [Charles]” to publicly address Trump’s manoeuvres, Marr said, adding that any such intervention would be made “very cautiously.”
Working in Charles’ favor, however, is the fact that Trump “is very impressed by the royal family,” so any criticism levelled by the King might be taken favorably. We saw Trump being besotted by the Royal Family late last year, when the President described Prince William as a “good man” and complimented the heir’s height during a meeting after the unveiling of the restored Notre Dame Cathedral. Elsewhere, Trump has spoken fondly of the late Queen Elizabeth, but hasn’t extended the same grace to Prince Harry, who has become an object of his mass-deportation plans.
However King Charles’ response to Trump might materialize, Marr says it won’t involve U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and would instead see the monarch consult with the Canadian government. That’s because Starmer has been reluctant to criticize Trump over his stance on Canada in an effort to preserve the good standing he has with the President. King Charles, Starmer, and Trudeau aren’t the only world leaders who’ve been roped into Trump’s diplomatic gaffes.
In response to his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum cheekily proposed that North America be renamed “America Mexicana.” For his part, Danish politician Anders Vistisen reminded Trump that despite his wishes otherwise, “Greenland is not for sale.” Then there was Panama Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha, who rebuked Trump’s proposal to seize control of the Panama Canal by reiterating that “The only hands that control the canal are Panamanian.” The jury is still out on what King Charles’ response might look like, but let’s hope just as searing.