President Trump’s focus shifted from royal pageantry to high-level diplomacy on Tuesday, the second day of his state visit to Britain, where he met with business leaders and Prime Minister Theresa May.
Mr. Trump opened his day with a business round-table meeting, where he spoke in optimistic terms about the possibility of a trade deal between the United States and Britain in the post-Brexit era. From there, he moved to 10 Downing Street for bilateral discussions with Mrs. May.
At a joint news conference with Mrs. May, Mr. Trump reiterated that his administration was eager to negotiate a “phenomenal” trade deal between the United States and Britain. “There is tremendous potential, I say two, maybe three times more than what we are doing today,” he said.
As Mr. Trump was holding talks, protesters were hitting the streets, with their Trump baby balloon returning to the skies over London. But their early numbers never seemed to equal the throngs that turned out in July during Mr. Trump’s last visit.
While the leaders met, Londoners took to the streets to protest Mr. Trump’s visit and his policies, including his stance on climate change. Security was tight across the city.
Mr. Trump said he had turned down a chance to meet with the opposition leader, Jeremy Corbyn, who has been one of his toughest critics in Britain. He also continued his dispute with London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, describing him, as well as Mr. Corbyn, a “negative force.”
He did meet on Tuesday with Nigel Farage, the pro-Brexit politician whose new party won a plurality of the vote in last month’s election for the European Parliament.
Monday
The first day of President Trump’s visit was a more ostentatious affair, beginning with scenes of his helicopter landing on the lawn of Buckingham Palace and ending with a formal state banquet hosted by Queen Elizabeth II.
The president and first lady spent much of the day with the royal family, after a brief stop at the residence of the American ambassador. They had lunch with the queen at Buckingham Palace, and later laid a wreath on the Grave of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey. Mr. and Mrs. Trump then had tea with Prince Charles at his home, Clarence House, before the evening banquet.
The Trump children were also in tow for much of the day, with Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, among the aides looking on as the president inspected a ceremonial honor guard on Monday morning. They toured the palace and accompanied the president to dinner, and took part in several other events throughout the visit.
Mr. Trump honored the queen during the state dinner, saying she “embodied the spirit of dignity, duty and patriotism that beats proudly in every British heart.”
At Buckingham Palace, Mr. Trump inspected an honor guard with Prince Charles and was joined at the welcoming ceremony by members of his family and his cabinet.
Outside the palace, large crowds of spectators gathered to watch the president’s arrival — by helicopter.
While the largest protest was planned for Tuesday, both critics of the president, and supporters, were making their presence known on Monday.