There may be a touch of polite 'passive aggression' in Britain's official gifts to Trump

Trump and Britain&#039;s Theresa May view a draft of the Declaration of Independence — (Image credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

After a lavish state banquet at Buckingham Palace on Monday night, President Trump met with outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday morning to discuss policy. At a business roundtable, Trump urged May to "stick around" to complete a bilateral U.S.-Britain trade deal, assuming Britain exits the European Union. Trump is undiplomatically pro-Brexit and supportive of May's pro-Brexit-er rivals, and May is resigning because Parliament rejected her Brexit plan multiple times. Protesters have launched the baby Trump balloon outside Parliament.

May, like Queen Elizabeth II, had a special gift for Trump. "Trump can do insults, but he could learn a thing or two from Theresa May about British passive aggression," Politico's Charlie Cooper writes. Her gift, a copy of Winston Churchill's draft of the Atlantic Charter of 1941, "is laden with symbolism — and just a little snark." The charter, negotiated with Franklin D. Roosevelt, sets out "common goals for the world, including freer trade, disarmament, and the right to self-determination of all people," The Associated Press explains. "The declaration helped lay the groundwork for the United Nations and the World Trade Organization."

"Trump has made no secret of his disdain for the U.N.," Cooper says, "and the gift will inevitably be read as a parting shot from the prime minister about the importance of multilateralism and the rules-based global order." The queen also touched on those themes in her Monday night toast to Trump, lauding the post-World War II work the U.S. and Britain did "with other allies to build an assembly of international institutions" that still work "together to safeguard a hard-won peace."

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Trump will take part in ceremonies in Britain and France to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day, and French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to deliver a similar pro-multilateral message. In London, May gifted first lady Melania Trump "a bespoke teapot," Britain's Metro reports. For more British passive aggression, read some reactions to that gift.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.