Monarch aces mission impossible: Trump gets chummy with Charles
Charles III’s charm offensive in the States to repair fractured UK-US relations has played to President Trump’s well-known royal fascination and inspired Mark Knight’s ‘Two Kings’ cartoon
READING LEVEL: GREEN
President Donald Trump tends to make the news quite frequently. Very frequently. In fact, he’s never out of the news. This week was a good example. There was the continuing war with Iran, another foiled assassination* attempt on him at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner*, and to finish off, the King and Queen of the United Kingdom dropped in for a visit.
I could draw a cartoon on President Trump every day, quite possibly every hour, and still not cover all his comings and goings.
One of my toons from this week was on King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s royal tour. But this was not just some meet and greet with ribbon cutting and smiling for the cameras. This visit was a crucially important diplomatic* mission for King Charles.
Like James Bond 007* or Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt*, the King’s mission, should he accept it, was to convince President Trump that Britain was a worthy and dependable ally* of the US and that the two countries shared common values and had done so since World War I.
The relationship between the two countries had drifted due to recent disagreements between Trump and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer over the Iranian war. Trump’s bombing of Iran caught everyone by surprise and when the Iranians did not capitulate*, Trump accused America’s allies of not coming to the aid of the US. Australia and the UK were in the firing line.
Sir Keir had refused to let US forces use British military bases to launch bombing missions, angering the President and leading him to make the claim that, “Sir Keir Starmer was no Winston Churchill*”.
Ouch! Something needed to be done to repair the relationship.
It is well known that President Trump has a love of royalty, particularly the British royal family. In 2019, President Trump made a three-day formal state visit to Great Britain, where he was wined and dined by the late Queen Elizabeth II.
The Poms turned on the pageantry* as only they can for the Trump visit, knowing how much he loved British pomp* and ceremony. President Trump’s mother was born in Scotland and emigrated to the US in 1930 at the age of 18 – another reason why he is fond of the UK.
In the US, many Americans believe that Trump is trying to make himself “king” of America. His autocratic* style of leadership, plus his decoration of the Oval Office in top-to-bottom gold, has led to the “No Kings” protests in America, from people resistant to Trump’s monarchical ambitions for the presidency.
So a cartoon about King Charles’ visit was in order. My first impression (and always the most accurate, I find) was that we didn’t have a king and a president meeting: we had two kings! So I drew King Charles in his royal regalia*: crown, ermine* fur cloaks, gold jewellery.
Beside him I had to design the president’s royal outfit. This would be fun. Lots and lots of gold was the order of the day, plus a big crown and a fur-trimmed golden cloak which trailed metres behind him.
King Charles’ visit was to point out the similarities these two great nations share despite the differences of political opinion sometimes. The two kings in all their finery clearly and majestically demonstrate the similarities!
POLL
GLOSSARY
- assassination: the murder of someone famous or important
- White House Correspondents’ Dinner: an annual banquet in Washington, DC, held by the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) and bringing together the journalists who cover the White House, senior government officials, politicians and celebrities
- diplomatic: involving diplomats or the management of the relationships between countries
- James Bond 007: fictional British secret agent created by author Ian Fleming in 1953 and the main character in those novels and long-running film franchise
- Ethan Hunt: the main protagonist of the Mission: Impossible action film series
- ally: a country that has agreed to help and support another country, especially in case of a war, or a person who is on your side
- pageantry: impressive and colourful ceremonies
- pomp: stately or magnificent display, ceremonial splendour
- capitulate: to accept something or agree to do something unwillingly
- Winston Churchill: an inspirational statesman, writer, orator and prime minister who led Britain to victory in the Second World War
- autocratic: demanding that people obey completely, without asking or caring about anyone else’s opinions
- regalia: official and traditional special clothes and decorations, especially those worn or carried in formal ceremonies
- ermine: expensive white fur with black spots that is the winter fur of the stoat
EXTRA READING
Trump tees off to topple Tehran
How war fuels federal budget fires
QUICK QUIZ
- Why were there so many journalists present for the most recent (thankfully unsuccessful) assassination attempt?
- What led to the recent rift in the relationship between the US and the UK?
- What features of President Trump’s leadership style led to the “No Kings” protests across America?
- Where was President Trump’s mother born and how old was she when she emigrated to the USA?
- How does Mark Knight characterise the King’s mission during the state visit?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. What’s going on?
What’s going on in this Mark Knight cartoon? Outline the following:
Issue –
Why is it newsworthy?
What’s the humour?
Which side of the issue are they representing?
What do you see that makes you say that?
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Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
2. Extension
If you could turn this cartoon into a joke to tell a friend, how would you phrase it? Is it funny? Could they guess the answer?
Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Personal and social, Critical and Creative Thinking
VCOP ACTIVITY
Describe it
Look at the cartoon and make a list of five nouns that you see. Then describe those five nouns with five adjectives. Now add a preposition to those five nouns and adjectives.
Finally, choose your favourite bundle and put all the words together to make one descriptive sentence.
(For lower reading level articles, remove “add a preposition”)