Boris Johnson defends Trump's visit to the queen by citing similar state visits by brutal dictators

Boris Johnson argues for Trump to meet Queen.
(Image credit: Peter Nicholls - WPA Pool /Getty Images)

More than one million citizens of the U.K. have signed a petition in protest of an official state visit by President Donald Trump. The petition explains that while Trump should be allowed in Britain, an official state visit would "cause embarrassment to Her Majesty the Queen."

To that, some British politicians say rubbish, the BBC reports. A state visit from "a democratically elected president of our closest ally and our single biggest trading partner" is "absolutely in our national interest," Tory MP Philip Davies argued. The U.K.'s Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Boris Johnson added that "both Nicolae Ceaușescu and Robert Mugabe have been entertained by Her Majesty."

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.