Hip, Hip, Hooray to the Queen's History Lesson

Let’s give a traditional British cheer to the Queen—Hip, Hip, Hooray; Hip, Hip, Hooray; Hip, Hip, Hooray—for her nuanced yet clearly distinguishable and distinguished public rebuke of Donald Trump’s disruptive attacks on global institutions that have safeguarded democracies since the end of World War II.

Speaking in what the Daily Mail called “code,” Queen Elizabeth II’s toast during the formal state dinner for her visitor included the following: “After the shared sacrifices of the Second World War, Britain and the United States worked with other allies to build an assembly of international institutions, to ensure that the horrors of conflict would never be repeated. While the world has changed, we are forever mindful of the original purpose of these structures: nations working together to safeguard a hard-won peace.” (https://mol.im/a/7100721)

It could hardly go unnoticed that Trump has questioned the value of NATO, has sharply criticized several of its members including the leaders of Germany, France and even Great Britain, has sided with NATO’s chief adversary, Russia, and has sought to undermine the European Union. 

The queen’s foray into tactful but forthright diplomacy was a deviation from her normal, at least in public, arms-length distance from politics. Contrast that long held behavior to that of Prince Charles who has been reliably reported to be eager to confront, or shall we say, educate, Trump about the realities of climate change. 

For his dinner toast, Trump  lavished praise on the 93-year-old monarch who has provided “seven decades of treasured friendship.” He called her “a great, great woman.” 

“On behalf of all Americans, I offer a toast to the eternal friendship of our people, the vitality of our nations, and to the long-cherished and truly remarkable reign of her majesty, the Queen,” he said. 

Trump also said he was toasting the “common values that will unite us long into the future—freedom, sovereignty, self-determination, the rule of law and reverence for the rights given to us by Almighty God.”

By including “self-determination” Trump may have been signaling his support for Brexit, a stance he has openly endorsed. 

How Trump will react to the gloved hand rebuke by the queen is unknown at this time. It is doubtful he will call her “nasty,” as he did her granddaughter-in-law, the Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle). Trump loves pageantry, even if it casts a shadow on him. All he will remember is the sumptuous surroundings of a state dinner in Buckingham Palace, with all eyes on him and the queen.

It's Not Too Late to Roll Up Britain's Red Carpet

If the Brits had any balls they would immediately cancel Donald Trump’s state visit to the United Kingdom. Yes, I know The Donald and his family entourage are about to board Air Force One to wing across the pond. 

Why would the Queen and outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May allow a blowhard like Trump to violate the norms of diplomacy on their territory? Keep in mind that several times Trump has injected himself into British politics, a diplomatic no-no for any leader of a foreign country. 

Trump backed Brexit. He has criticized May’s stewardship. He has expressed a choice for her successor. He has pressured Britain to abandon Huawei, the Chinese chip maker. He offended royal protocol during his initial trip to England by walking in front of Queen Elizabeth. He dissed Meghan (Markle), the Duchess of Sussex, by calling her “nasty.” Trump is now claiming he never called her nasty, but the quote came from The Sun, a British tabloid owned by his buddy Rupert Murdoch, and has been broadcast on television. 

Why would the British roll out the welcome mat to him? It is almost a certainty he will overstep normal bounds during his time with them, as he did a week ago in Japan when he sided with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un over his host, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, on the danger of recent North Korean missile tests. 

Yes, he is in Great Britain as part of the 75th anniversary commemoration of D-Day.  But that does not entitle him to the trappings of a respected visitor. 

As a country the United States believed it was important to stand up to dictators. Under Trump we now believe dictators like Kim and Vladimir Putin are more credible than our own state department and intelligence community. 

Some would argue Britain owes its continued existence to the aid we extended before we entered World War II and the military might we brought to bear against Germany after we engaged in the conflict. True. But it could also be argued that Britain’s valiant fight 1939 through 1941 benefitted America. Moreover, had Britain succumbed, many military analysts believe the United States would not have been able to defeat the Axis Powers.  

For sure Trump would explode if his ego were damaged by a late disinvite. He would lash out verbally and perhaps economically against the British. But somebody has to start demanding that America and its president behave not just in their own best interests but also in those of the Free World. As too many countries slip under the iron fist of autocrats it is imperative that Trumpism not be allowed to fester and plant roots in democratic countries. 

Seventy-five years ago America led the D-Day invasion to save the world for democracy. This year Britain can stand proud once again if it rolls up the red carpet before Donald Trump soils it with his dirty shoes. 

Celebrities, and Popes, Among Us

One of the things I miss most about not working in Manhattan is the serendipity of coming across a celebrity on the street. Or in the airport while traveling. I’ve written before about running into and saying hello to celebrities as diverse as Neil Simon, Steve Allen and Audrey Meadows, Alan King, Richard Lewis, Johnny Damon, Joe Torre, David Wells, and Gilda’s all time favorite encounter, Al Pacino. 

When she lived in Greenwich Village, Ellie kept up the mystique of running into notables. She once trailed Sarah Jessica Parker for blocks along the Hudson River promenade. The Village is a great place to see stars mingling with the masses. One time after dropping her off, I said hello to Jason Jones of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as he was pushing a baby stroller.

Meeting VIPs seems to run in the Forseter blood. My sister Lee has an avocation of selling jewelry and other knickknacks at flea markets around Los Angeles. Sunday she and her partner Sherry were at the Rose Bowl. Sherry had brought along some chocolates to entice buyers when Dustin Hoffman passed by with two friends. Though she was reluctant to push the chocolates on him, she screwed up her courage later in the day when he returned as they were packing up. He not only took the tasty treat but he also posed for not one but two pictures. 

Lee said, “He was soooo recognizable.” I agree. About 10 years ago I crossed paths with him on East 57th Street between Park and Lexington Avenues. He was walking rather briskly so there wasn’t time to even say a quick “hello, I like your work.” I don’t think he’d remember me. I always knew he was short and from our encounter, and now his picture with my 5’5” sister really confirmed it.

Now that the pope is retiring, is Queen Elizabeth II’s voluntary departure from the throne in the cards? Gilda doesn’t think so. I’m not that sure. We’ll see who’s more prophetic.

As startling as the headline about Pope Benedict XVI retiring was, it was hardly as eye-popping as the one a regional British newspaper ran about 40 years ago. In large letters it blared, “Pope Weds.”

It was all a scam by my friend Dave Banks, then an editor on the small paper, and his buddies, a prank they wanted to play on one of their colleagues in charge of newspaper distribution. They had all had a rather liquid dinner. After returning to their work stations, the editors created a fake broadsheet to wrap bundled newspapers trucked to newstands across the country. 

They thought their friend in the distribution area would get a chuckle from seeing the fake headline, but he was too tanked from dinner and fell asleep. By the time he woke up the papers had been shipped with the provocative headline. They scurried to contact all the drivers to retrieve all the broadsheets. As the pope’s marital status has never been in question, they must have been successful.

Kiss and Tell

Next time we are confronted with a royal wedding (or what passes for royalty these days, such as a Kennedy or Trump marriage), let’s make sure the plucky couple gets a private screening of the Al and Tipper Gore kiss at the 2000 Democratic National Convention.

Our demanding U.S. public wants none of that reserved British peck-and-be-quiet smooch, if we can even call it a kiss, that William bestowed on Kate’s lips not once but twice, as if a double measure of a refined public display of affection would suffice when compared to the passion Al presented to the public.

Who cares if Al and Tipper have since gone their separate ways. For one shining moment they clearly captivated and cornered the market on PDAs.


Trust but Verify: I was no fan of Ronald Reagan’s presidency but he did provide a phrase useful to all, especially in this Internet media age. “Trust but verify.”

I trusted Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb that Queen Elizabeth snubbed Camilla at the royal wedding, but when I finally got around to verifying their claim by examining the tape, it turned out they were wrong. The queen did indeed shake Camilla’s hand. I changed my original post but in case some of you read the blog before the correction, here's an official apology and a warning not to believe all you see or hear from the media. Even from me.


Politics and Humor: Some of you might have heard about the annual White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington, DC, last night. As a public service, here are links to two of the main speeches, the first from President Obama, the second from the featured guest, Seth Meyers, head writer of Saturday Night Live. They’re both around 20 minutes long. Make sure you note Donald Trump’s reaction to being the butt of much of the humor.

Obama: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9mzJhvC-8E&NR=1

Seth Meyers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YGITlxfT6s&feature=relmfu