Moments later, Trump stepped back from the podium at the White House to greet Charles with a handshake, sharing a moment of laughter.
The White House labeled a photo of the exchange, “TWO KINGS.”
This wasn’t the first occasion Trump had toyed with royal imagery during his second presidential term.
TWO KINGS. ???? pic.twitter.com/iPVUxc4i4H
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) April 28, 2026
In October 2025, he released an AI-generated video featuring himself in a crown, flying a fighter jet over “No Kings” protesters opposing his administration. Republican leaders in Congress have frequently dubbed these demonstrations as “Hate America” rallies.
In the video, Trump’s character is shown dropping waste onto the crowd below.
On the same day, he shared another AI creation depicting him adorned with a crown, royal cape, and sword, while congressional Democrats knelt before him.
Revolutionaries from 13 British North American colonies fought an eight-year conflict for independence against Charles’ fourth great-grandfather, George III, starting in 1775. The United States declared its independence from Great Britain in 1776, citing the crown’s “history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States.”
“One notable difference between America and the UK is that the people are the sovereign. We don’t have a single sovereign leader,” Representative Joe Morelle, a Democrat from New York, told Reuters. “I don’t believe the president, with all due respect, comprehends that distinction.”
White House representatives did not immediately reply to a request for comments. Trump is set to host Charles and Queen Camilla for a formal state dinner on Tuesday evening.
In remarks to Congress earlier in the day, Charles reflected on the two nations’ shared heritage and governance, citing the Magna Carta, the 1689 British Declaration of Rights, and the 1791 U.S. Bill of Rights to assert that “executive power is subject to checks and balances.”
Trump dismissed comparisons of monarchical behaviour in an interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes” following a thwarted assassination attempt on Saturday.
“I’m not a king,” he jested to interviewer Norah O’Donnell. “If I were a king, I wouldn’t be having this conversation with you.”
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