Red carpet, protests await Trump in Britain

LONDON — President Donald Trump will get the red carpet treatment on his brief visit to Britain beginning today: Military bands at a gala dinner, lunch with the prime minister at her country residence, then tea with the queen at Windsor Castle before flying off to one of his golf clubs in Scotland.

But trip planners may go out of their way to shield Trump from viewing another aspect of the greeting: an oversized balloon depicting the president as an angry baby in a diaper that will be flown from Parliament Square during what are expected to be massive gatherings of protesters opposed to Trump’s presence.

Rarely has a foreign leader been so mocked on an official visit — London’s mayor, a Muslim who has challenged Trump’s world view — okayed the balloon, which is an apt symbol of Trump’s tempestuous relationship with Britain, traditionally the United States’ closest ally.