- Joe and Jill Biden won’t be bringing a US delegation to the Queen’s funeral, CNN reported.
- It means that the potential for Biden to invite former presidents — such as Trump — has closed off.
- A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately confirm whether he had been invited.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden have received individual invitations to the Queen’s funeral, unexpectedly closing off a potential avenue for former President Donald Trump to attend.
Queen Elizabeth II of England died Thursday afternoon local time after 70 years on the British throne. A state funeral is planned for September 19.
But amid the preparations, the Bidens have received two personal invitations, rather than being asked to form a US delegation, according to CNN, which cited unnamed White House officials.
Amid the general expectation that the White House would be invited to form a delegation, there has been chatter weighing up whether Biden would involve Trump. A spokesperson for the 45th president did not immediately respond to Insider’s query.
Trump, who met the Queen in 2018 and 2019, professed to be very fond of her, and issued an effusive statement soon after her death which called her a “grand and beautiful lady.”
“There was nobody like her!” he wrote.
However, it’s never been entirely clear whether that affection was reciprocated. Trump’s visits to the UK were marred by mass protests and moments when he broke protocol, including keeping her waiting for around 10 minutes.
One wild internet theory even speculated that the Queen — who never publicly revealed her political feelings — was sending a subtle anti-Trump message through her choice of brooch.
Countries often invite leaders to form delegations for major funerals, leaving the decision open for the sitting president to compile its own list of dignitaries — such as former presidents — which can reflect a politically bipartisan array of guests.
In 2008, then-President Barack Obama led a delegation to the state funeral of Nelson Mandela that included former president George W. Bush and Sen. Ted Cruz, as The Guardian reported at the time.
Vice President Kamala Harris is due to lead a US delegation to the planned funeral of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in September, the White House confirmed on September 7.
At one of the UK’s largest royal funerals, that of the Queen Mother, then-First Lady Laura Bush led a US delegation that included two former ambassadors.
Biden formally accepted the invitation to the Queen’s funeral on Sunday, as the Associated Press (AP) reported.