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What You Need To Know About Trump & The Queen's Relationship (Or Lack Of One)

by Joseph D. Lyons
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There may be "no obligatory codes of behavior when meeting the queen or a member of the royal family," according to the official website of the British Royal Family. But President Trump, who is set to meet the Queen of England during his visit to the UK, will surely want to impress. But can he? Whether or not the queen likes Trump will play as much a role in the success of his royal visit as any bow, curtsy, or other formality could.

How the queen feels about the president of the United States is mostly something of speculation. Trump is visiting the UK on July 13 and will meet with the Queen at Windsor Castle. This is not a state visit, but rather a "working visit," and as such there will be no banquet at Buckingham Palace or carriage rides through the British capital.

Even though what she thinks of Trump is unknown, the queen has been known to make a joke about him. In the documentary The Queen's Green Planet, the queen referenced Trump.

Queen Elizabeth was giving a tour of her garden for the documentary and in the background you can hear the sound of helicopters. "Why do they always go round and round when you want to talk?" She asked the documentary's host. "Sounds like President Trump ... President Obama."

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That's particularly biting because the queen is thought not to like helicopters, which usually accompany a presidential visit. Some of President Obama's helicopters damaged the grass in a 2011 visit, which led to her forbidding any more than three helicopters to land in subsequent visits.

That's the only thing the queen has said about Trump publicly. Given that this is not a state visit, the queen does not technically need to meet Trump. That could show that she does not have anything against him.

She may be one of the few Britons who doesn't. After UK Prime Minister Theresa May first invited Trump to visit, shortly after his inauguration, a petition reached nearly 2 million signatures asking that the visit be prevented. The petition said he should be allowed entry into the country, but that a meeting with the queen was inappropriate because it "would cause embarrassment to Her Majesty the Queen."

The petition continued, "Donald Trump's well documented misogyny and vulgarity disqualifies him from being received by Her Majesty the Queen or the Prince of Wales. Therefore during the term of his presidency Donald Trump should not be invited to the United Kingdom for an official State Visit."

The petition was rejected by the government, but that doesn't mean that all British politicians are excited to welcome him to the UK. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has said he doesn't think that residents will hold back their feelings about him.

“If he comes to London, President Trump will experience an open and diverse city that has always chosen unity over division and hope over fear. He will also no doubt see that Londoners hold their liberal values of freedom of speech very dear," Khan tweeted.

It has been noted in the press that Trump will barely set foot in London during his visit, perhaps to avoid any large-scale protests that activists there would plan.

One thing the Queen is sure to dislike about Trump's visit is set: his use of helicopters. The U.S. Ambassador in London has confirmed that will be the president's mode of transportation. "This is a short trip. It's absolutely packed with things that he has to do. There's a lot of organization planning that went into it."

If he can ensure the helicopters don't damage the lawn, he will surely win a few points.