Queen Elizabeth Reportedly Complained About Donald Trump’s Helicopter Ruining Her Lawn
Queen Elizabeth has reportedly complained about Donald Trump’s helicopter leaving marks on her lawn at Buckingham Palace during his state visit in June. The Sunday Times reports that the queen remarked about Marine One “ruining” the lawn to Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison.
Morrison was in the U.K. at the time of the state visit for the commemoration of D-Day.
“He had got off the plane and went straight to the palace to see the Queen, who led him out to the gardens and said: ‘Come and look at my lawn. It’s ruined.'” a source said.
But it looks like the president doesn’t have to worry too much about whether he offended the queen with his helicopter, because, according to The Times, the comment was a joke.
During the visit a couple of months ago, Marine One transported the president, First Lady Melania Trump and his team from the palace to the U.S. ambassador’s residence and back. Trump’s contingent also included a support helicopter.
As The Express notes, during the trip, Donald Trump expressed that all was going well and didn’t indicate that the queen had mentioned a problem with her lawn. Instead, he complimented her on her “hospitality” and speculated that this was the most enjoyable state visit that she’s had.
According to The Express, the queen showed the Australian Prime Minister her lawn the day after Trump arrived.
As the BBC notes, Trump’s state visit to the U.K. lasted three days. On the first day, he received a “ceremonial welcome at Buckingham Palace with the Queen and The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall in attendance. Later that day, The Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry joined the party for a private lunch. A visit to Westminster Abbey followed and the state banquet took place later that day. Prince William and Kate Middleton attended as well as a host of other prominent British dignitaries and some high-profile Americans living in the U.K.”
On the second day, he met with former British Prime Minister Theresa May and the Duke of York Prince Andrew, as well as other British business leaders. He later visited the Prime Minister’s office at Downing Street.
As The Guardian notes, the president’s state visit triggered numerous protests around London and over 6,000 police officers were used to maintain order. This extra security cost the Metro Police £3,419,905 or $4,199,137.19. The amount spent on security for this trip was more than when President Trump visited London in 2018.
