How did it go? Flattery will get you everywhere, including, apparently, into the good graces of Trump. Starmer showered the president with praise, expertly playing on his well-documented admiration for the British monarchy by theatrically producing a letter from King Charles III inviting him round for tea at Buckingham Palace.
“It’s an invitation for a second state visit. This is really special. This has never happened before. This is unprecedented,” Starmer crowed with all the enthusiasm of a home shopping channel host hawking a last-minute deal on a kitchen knife set.
Was the smarm laid on a little thick? Perhaps. But Trump is not a subtle man. And the gesture won the British prime minister plaudits back home, with the front page of the i newspaper deeming him “Charmer Starmer.”
In one testy moment with Vice President JD Vance (more on him in a minute), however, Starmer defended his country’s record on free speech, after Vance claimed “infringements” in Britain were hurting American citizens.
London “wouldn’t want to reach across U.S. citizens, and we don’t, and that’s absolutely right. But in relation to free speech in the U.K. I’m very proud of our history there,” Starmer retorted, leaning forward out of his seat.
Mark Vlasic, an adjunct professor of law and public policy at Georgetown University, told POLITICO that Starmer showed “how best to engage with this White House.”
