US Ambassador to the UK hopes that the Sussexes ‘support the king’ this weekend

President Biden appointed a lot of new ambassadors to replace Trump’s cronies. The current American ambassador to the UK is Jane Hartley, a Democratic donor and political ally of President Biden. She came into the ambassadorship in early 2022, having also served as an ambassador during the Obama administration. While she’s a Democratic fundraiser and donor, she knows what she’s doing. Biden wouldn’t have appointed some know-nothing crony to such an important ambassadorship. Despite his Irish pride, President Biden understands the need to have a mature diplomat in that position in London. Which makes it ridiculously funny that every time Ambassador Hartley is interviewed in the British media, she’s fielding questions about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, not Ukraine, not Brexit, not relations with the European Union. Back in January, there was a kerfuffle because the ambassador refused to answer a question about the Sussexes:

Jane Hartley, US ambassador to the UK, has just sidestepped a question on television from @bbclaurak about whether the furore over Harry and Meghan has damaged relations between the two countries. But she praised the King for his work, particularly The Prince’s Trust.

— Richard Palmer (@RoyalReporter) January 29, 2023

LMAO. Even if Ambassador Hartley was like “yes, maybe the Sussexit did lead to a PR crisis for the monarchy,” what the hell was she supposed to do about it? Tell President Biden to launch missiles at Montecito?? Well, it got even funnier this week when Ambassador Hartley once again spoke to the British media and OF COURSE they asked her about Meghan and Harry. British people are going to do this to every American from now on, right?

The US ambassador to Britain has said she hopes Prince Harry and Meghan will support the King this weekend. Ambassador Jane Hartley also played down fears that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s complaints about the monarchy have taken away support for King Charles in her homeland.

Speaking to Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel, hosts of The News Agents podcast, Ms Hartley suggested the Sussexes were getting very little mainstream media attention in the US.

When asked how much support they have in the US, Ambassador Hartley said she had not been home so may not have the “total sentiment” but added: “I’ve said this before, every family has their issues. You should come to our Thanksgiving dinner sometime with my extended family. Everybody has an opinion, and everybody speaks it clearly and loudly. And you know, I just hope that for this Coronation, there’s support for the King. That’s what I would want from them.”

Asked if she believed the Sussexes had taken away support for The King in the US, she replied: “If you look at our media, look at our New York Times, look at our Washington Post, they’re not getting that much coverage, to be very honest with you. The coverage right now is really about the Coronation. The coverage right now is about what the UK is doing with us in terms of Ukraine. The coverage right now is the alliance that President Biden has put together. So, you’re not seeing them in mainstream media, if you want to know the truth in my view, and once again, I’m here, I’m not there.”

She defended President Biden after former President Donald Trump said it was “disrespectful” of him not to attend the Coronation. “I could not disagree more. I think what was behind it was truly just scheduling and logistics,” she said.

“The President has been here four times. And the President has committed in a great phone call with the King, which I don’t want to talk about, that he will come again to the UK before the end of the year, when he and The King will have some much more private time together. So, I think that whole thing is ridiculous if you want to know the truth.”

[From The Daily Express]

“Look at our New York Times, look at our Washington Post, they’re not getting that much coverage, to be very honest with you. The coverage right now is really about the Coronation…” The Times and WaPo have been covering the coronation stuff, but they’ve been increasingly critical, as have other American outlets. The American press is aghast by the expensive medieval pageantry and historic unpopularity of the new queen consort especially.

And again, you have to understand the question asked of the ambassador and the mindset of British journalists, who operate in partnership with the monarchy and Tory government. The British media is not “adversarial” in the way the American media sees itself. The British media believes that if the Sussexes aren’t getting wall-to-wall, full-throated support in the American media, that means that the Sussexes are “unpopular.” When really, Harry and Meghan can do whatever they want, whenever they want, and the British media is going to be gagged no matter what. Just the sheer fact that Ambassador Hartley continues to field questions about the Sussexes is proof enough that the Sussexes are the story.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.