JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
It's been a day of pomp and a little bit of circumstance with King Charles III's state visit to America. It began with a formal welcome for the King and Queen Camilla at a military ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, complete with a 21-gun salute and national anthems.
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SUMMERS: And in the past few hours, King Charles has addressed Congress, calling for reconciliation amid tensions between the U.S. and the U.K. after President Trump criticized Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the Iran conflict. NPR's White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez and NPR's London correspondent Lauren Frayer have been following all of this. They both join us now. Hi there.
FRANCO ORDOÑEZ, BYLINE: Hey, Juana.
LAUREN FRAYER, BYLINE: Hi.
SUMMERS: Franco, I'll start with you. You spent the day at the White House, where President Trump hosted King Charles. The president, I have to say, was notably gracious. I understand that he has a special affinity for the monarch.
ORDOÑEZ: Yeah, he certainly does. I mean, the White House really rolled out the red carpet for the king and queen on really kind of a bit of a gray day here at the White House. Trump actually called it a beautiful British day to celebrate the 250th anniversary of independence from the British crown. You know, as Trump has done before, he reminisced about how his mom, who was born in Scotland, loved to watch the royals and particularly loved the queen. Trump even joked that his mother had a crush on a much younger and then-Prince Charles.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I also remember her saying very clearly, Charles, look, young Charles. He's so cute.
ORDOÑEZ: Now, Trump really loves the pageantry of these state visits. You know, the two leaders also walked together to, you know, review the troops.
FRAYER: And what I noticed there was how the king was often a few steps behind Trump, who is a year and a half older than him. The king is still a cancer patient. The U.K. tabloids have gone wild here over how Trump stood in front of the king, touched his arm at one point. You know, protocol says you're not supposed to initiate physical contact with the monarch.
ORDOÑEZ: Trump actually did that with the Saudi Arabian crown prince as well. I mean, he's never really one for strict protocols. I think what you did see, though, was basically Trump's affinity for the king. I mean, really such a different tone from Trump about - from Trump toward the U.K., considering how much he's been attacking the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, over the government's refusal to take part in the U.S. war in Iran. And Trump's also been very critical of other NATO allies, including Germany, who he's attacked today after the chancellor said the U.S. was being outmaneuvered in negotiations on Iran.
SUMMERS: Lauren, polls show that most Brits wanted their king to cancel this trip in part over those insults of Starmer. Did the king address that?
FRAYER: The king is typically apolitical, but he gave a very political speech to Congress today. I mean, my phone has been blowing up with British friends cheering on their king for taking Trump to task seemingly on topic after topic. Here's part of what he said.
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KING CHARLES III: With the spirit of 1776 in our minds, we can perhaps agree that we do not always agree.
FRAYER: You know, while Trump has talked about Christian values, the king emphasized interfaith values and diversity. He also talked about the rise of fascism in the 1930s. He talked about the checks on executive power. Here's a little more.
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CHARLES III: America's words carry weight and meaning, as they have since independence. The actions of this great nation matter even more.
FRAYER: You know, Franco mentioned Trump's criticism of NATO. The king noted that the only time NATO's collective defense was triggered was for America after 9/11. He also called for more support for Ukraine and said the U.K. is spending more on its own defense.
SUMMERS: Franco, taking all of that into consideration, what impact can the king's visit have on easing tensions?
ORDOÑEZ: Well, I mean, Trump really likes King Charles, I mean, even calling him today a, quote, "very elegant man." I will say it'll be interesting to see how Trump absorbs the king's comments, which as Lauren points out, took a bit of a rare political turn. I mean, really, it's just a great example of the use of soft power, as really both sides delicately try to ease those tensions and maintain the strong historic ties.
SUMMERS: If the king's speech to Congress was for U.S. ears, what about Brits? What does a successful royal trip look like from their perspective?
FRAYER: Yeah, so the palace will see this as a success. If the king charms Trump, which it looks like he has a bit, and if one other name doesn't come up, and that's Jeffrey Epstein's. Today, British televisions have been split screens, you know, the royal visit to the U.S. on one side and this parliamentary debate about Jeffrey Epstein on the other, specifically how a friend of Epstein's got nominated as ambassador to Washington. You'll recall the king's brother, Andrew, settled a lawsuit with an Epstein victim, denies wrongdoing but was stripped of his title prince and is still under police investigation. The king in his speech to Congress did make a reference to victims of some ills in both countries. And afterward, a royal official told me the king intended that to be a reference to Epstein's victims. The official shared that on condition of anonymity because they aren't allowed to speak publicly.
ORDOÑEZ: Yeah. Trump kind of visited Britain last summer, and it was interesting how the demands about the Epstein case followed him there.
SUMMERS: Yeah.
FRAYER: You and I covered that together, yeah. And now the king is likely hoping the questions about his brother's links don't follow him...
SUMMERS: Right.
FRAYER: ...To your side of the pond.
SUMMERS: NPR's Lauren Frayer and NPR's Franco Ordoñez, thank you.
ORDOÑEZ: Thank you.
FRAYER: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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