Smiles and wonder: How the US reacted to King Charles

Smiles and wonder: How the US reacted to King Charles 9 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleBernd Debusmann JrWhite House reporter Getty ImagesStatistics show that King Charles was never a favourite Royal among Americans - but that may be changing. The United States declared independence from the British crown 250 years ago - but this week, it could not get enough of it. From the minute King Charles and Queen Camilla stepped onto the White House South Lawn, US networks dumped their standard diet of political warfare and breaking news for something rare: pure pageantry. In a country that seems to agree on almost nothing, the British royals managed something close to a clean sweep - drawing warm receptions from both sides of a political spectrum where neutral ground is rare. The visit came at a fraught time in US-British relations, with the White House and Downing Street at odds over the war in Iran, straining a relationship both governments insist remains unshakeable.The reviews following the King's appearances at the White House, in Congress and in New York were warm across the political divide. A commentator in the conservative Washington Examiner wrote that the UK needed more than conventional diplomacy - and that King Charles delivered. "His Majesty's Government under scandal-plagued Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer needed the monarchy to do what only the king could do," the editorial said. The King's comments in Congress and at the White House's lavish banquet on Tuesday - mixing humour with history and a call for unity - also were widely praised. Some saw them as a subtle rebuke of President Trump. "Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to see what's really going on," an opinion writer wrote in the Arizona Republic. "It's striking to have a king remind us of what democracy is all about." For months, Donald Trump - a committed Anglophile and avid fan of the Royals - repeatedly told repor...