Congressional leaders have invited King Charles III to address a joint meeting of Congress when he visits the United States later this month to mark the 250th anniversary of America’s independence from Britain. It will be the first such address by a member of the British monarchy in 35 years.
Charles was invited to address Congress on April 28, in a letter sent Wednesday that was signed by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana), Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-South Dakota), Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-New York) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York).
“As we celebrate this historic milestone and recommit ourselves to the principles upon which our nation was founded, we also recognize that the American experiment endures in no small part because of the British tradition from which it sprang,” they wrote. “We believe an Address to Congress will provide a unique opportunity to share your vision for the future of our special relationship and reaffirm our alliance at this pivotal time in history.”
It has become a modern tradition for foreign leaders to address a joint meeting of Congress, if invited, during their formal state visits to the United States, though such addresses are relatively rare. During President Donald Trump’s first term in office, only two foreign leaders addressed joint meetings of Congress: French President Emmanuel Macron in 2018 and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in 2019. There were nine such addresses when Joe Biden was president.
Though several former British prime ministers have addressed joint meetings of Congress, the last member of the British monarchy to do so was Charles’s mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1991. The queen, congressional leaders noted in their letter to Charles this week, emphasized that the close relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom was rooted in “a shared ‘spirit of democracy,’ and a commitment to the fundamental values of individual freedom, consent of the governed, and the rule of law.”
On Tuesday, Trump said that Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla, would be visiting the United States from April 27 to 30, and that the White House would host a state dinner for them on April 28. This will be Charles’s first state visit to the United States as king.
“I look forward to spending time with the King, whom I greatly respect. It will be TERRIFIC!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump made a state visit to the United Kingdom in September, during which he was feted with a carriage procession, military flyover and a banquet at Windsor Castle. At the time, Trump called the visit “truly one of the highest honors of my life.”
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