Trumps dine at Churchill’s birthplace
President avoids many protesters near London
BLENHEIM PALACE, England — President Donald Trump on Thursday left behind a contentious NATO gathering in Brussels and moved on to Britain, where he found a government in turmoil and sizable protests shadowing his every move.
All was serene, however, during a lavish evening welcome ceremony at Blenheim Palace at the start of his two-day British stay.
Trump was whisked away to an oasis of warm greetings at a black-tie reception at Blenheim, birthplace of Winston Churchill, the larger-thanlife British leader cited by the president as a model of leadership.
The president reinstalled a bust of Churchill in the Oval Office shortly after his inauguration and screened the 2017 film “Darkest Hour” at the White House last winter in a sign of his affinity for the British leader.
“The president knows how important the special relationship is firsthand and that’s why the bust of Churchill is actually in the Oval Office as we speak. This is not an accident,” said Woody Johnson, Trump’s ambassador to the U.K. “He knows that he has an opportunity to make this special relationship even stronger.”
Trump’s Marine One departure from the ambassador’s residence was met by jeers from demonstrators banging pots and pans, and another pack of protesters lined roads near the palace.
Trump was greeted at the palace by British Prime Minster Theresa May, whose government has been rocked by resignations from ongoing tumult over Brexit.
Before leaving Brussels, Trump played down the protests but acknowledged that he expected tension in Britain.
“I’m going to a few hot spots,” Trump said, looking ahead to Britain and his summit in Finland on Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “And I said, ‘Putin may be the easiest of them all.’ You never know.”
The outdoor arrival ceremony at Blenheim — Trump wore a tuxedo and first lady Melania Trump a butter-yellow, chiffon off-the-shoulder gown — was a grand affair marked by a military band in bearskin hats, hundreds of business leaders in black tie and gorgeous setting sunlight.