President Donald Trump's remarks praising the British Royal Family while warning the U.K. could have ended up with "people that weren't great" ignited fresh speculation Wednesday that the U.S. leader was taking a veiled swipe at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The comments came during a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Scotland, as Trump prepares for a second unprecedented state visit to the United Kingdom.
"Being with Charles, Camilla and everybody, I've got to know a lot of the family members. They are great people. They are really great people," Trump said. He added, "And in that sense, I think the UK is very lucky, you could have people that weren't great people. I don't know if I can say that, but you could have people that weren't."
Though Trump made no explicit mention of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, social media commentators and royal watchers quickly interpreted the remarks as thinly veiled criticism of the California-based couple. "I love the shade President Trump throws at Prince Harry & Meghan Markle," one user posted.
Trump and the Sussexes have had a long-standing, publicly strained relationship, dating back to 2020 when the couple encouraged Americans to "reject hate speech" ahead of the presidential election. While they didn't name Trump directly, many interpreted their comments as a tacit endorsement of Joe Biden. Trump later said he was "no fan" of Meghan and claimed Harry was "whipped."
In February, Trump dismissed calls to deport Harry over his past drug use disclosed in his memoir Spare, but still managed a dig: "I'll leave him alone. He's got enough problems with his wife. She's terrible." The Duke appeared to respond during a speech at the Invictus Games, lamenting "weak moral character in the world."
The latest exchange comes ahead of Trump's state visit to the U.K., scheduled for September 17-19, where he and First Lady Melania Trump will be hosted at Windsor Castle by King Charles III and Queen Camilla. Buckingham Palace confirmed the visit after Starmer personally delivered a handwritten invitation from the King during a White House meeting earlier this year.
Trump's press conference with Starmer also veered into domestic U.K. politics, with the president offering unsolicited campaign advice. "Politics is pretty simple," he said, suggesting Starmer could beat Reform U.K. leader Nigel Farage by cutting taxes and stopping illegal immigration. "Generally speaking, the one who cuts taxes the most, the one who gives you the lowest energy prices, the best kind of energy, the one that keeps you out of wars... and in your case a big immigration component."
Starmer appeared visibly uncomfortable as Trump criticized London Mayor Sadiq Khan, calling him a "nasty person" who had done a "terrible job." Starmer responded only to affirm Khan was his "friend."
The press conference was held at Trump's Turnberry golf course in Ayrshire during the president's private four-day visit to Scotland. In a rare move, Starmer flew north to meet Trump on his home turf. Later, the two flew together aboard Air Force One from Glasgow to a private dinner in Aberdeen.
