A preview of the upcoming book, “The Queen and Her Presidents: The Hidden Hand That Shaped History,” revealed a key quality President Donald Trump envied about the late Queen Elizabeth II.
While America was born from a rebellion against the British Crown in the 18th century, enduring historic ties between the United States and the United Kingdom have lasted through the centuries. Elizabeth’s 70-year reign coincided with the tenure of 14 presidents across the Atlantic, some of whom made specific state visits to meet her specifically.
President Donald Trump was one of those presidents, and he spoke about his experience there with author Susan Page in a book that will be published on April 14. In the book, Trump told Page about one conversation with Queen Elizabeth he never forgot.
“I said, ‘So could I ask you who was your favorite president?’” Trump recalled.
The Queen purportedly replied, “Why? They were all so good.”
“I know, but did you like Ronald Reagan the best?” Trump pushed.
“Oh, yes, I liked him very much, but they were all good,” she said.
After asking her about former President Richard Nixon as well and getting a similar response, Trump asked, “So what do you mean, you liked them all?”
“I liked them all. I can’t say anything bad about any of them. They were great,” the Queen said.
Trump then recalled pivoting to ask about British prime ministers, asking if Winston Churchill was her favorite.
“No, no, no. He was wonderful, Winston. But they were all so good. They worked so hard. They were very different, but they worked so hard. They were all so good,” the Queen replied.
Trump was reportedly dazzled by her graceful social tact.
“I said to myself, ‘How genius is this?’” he told the author. “I couldn’t get her to say a bad thing about anybody. She was amazing, actually. And not for any reason other than I don’t think she wanted to create controversy. It was unnecessary.”
“For Trump, she prompted a rare moment of self-reflection,” Page wrote.
“I hate to say this because it’s very disparaging to myself. She was sort of the opposite of me. She didn’t mix it up,” Trump admitted. “She was there for so many decades, and she literally never made a mistake, if you think about it. I mean, everyone was making mistakes around her, but she never made a mistake.”
