KEIR Starmer proved a charmer in his meeting with Trump – winning him round with crafty good cheer signals, body language experts revealed.
The PM buttered up Trump with a birthday-gift letter, pally shoulder pats, and by avoiding the thorny stuff, the communication pros said.
SplashStarmer looked awkward after handing Trump a singed invitation from the King[/caption]
SplashStarmer took the lead with this handshake, yanking the President towards him[/caption]
Starmer took on Trump in the White House yesterday as he looks to shore up US support for Ukraine – with President Zelensky due to follow today for his own White House showdown.
There were no big promises on Ukraine, but Trump did say the door was open to a “real trade deal” between the UK and US.
Graham Davies, Rishi’s former presentation coach, said Keir “just about managed to stand up to Trump without taking a knee”.
He said that, even though Keir doesn’t like Trump, he made of good job of pretending to.
And Erik Bucy, professor of political communications, thought Starmer struck the right tone with his body language – chumming it up with Trump like an old mate.
These were the secret ingredients behind Keir’s success.
LOVE LETTER
The PM’s Trump card was a “love bomb” letter from the King – “pre-timed and ready to explode”, Davies said.
The hand-signed note invited Trump for an unheard-of second state visit to the UK.
Starmer stumbled over himself to hammer home how “special” the letter was, and carefully studied the president for his reaction.
Bucy said Starmer’s tone was “that of a parent announcing a birthday surprise” as he brandished the paper.
He said this was a classic “affinity gesture”, which Keir paired with a “reassuring pat on the shoulder” for a full charm offensive.
The prof explained the letter hit the mark because it felt to Trump like “acceptance into high society” – which he adores.
Davies said Starmer was right to come bearing the letter, but didn’t really have a choice because it was the “entrance fee” needed to buy into Trump’s favour.
via REUTERSThe letter from King Charles was hailed as ‘special and beautiful’ by Trump[/caption]
GettyThe invitation marks the second time Trump will head to Britain for state visit, having been invited by the late Queen back in 2019[/caption]
TOUCHY FEELY
Starmer was more intimate with Trump than he is with his own family, according to Davies.
The PM planted a series of awkward pats on the president’s shoulder – though failed miserably to make it look natural.
Bucy said Keir played the physical game “very smartly” by “winning Trump’s goodwill with the first handshake” and “cementing” the bond throughout.
He was trying to “bro it up as much as possible” without overstepping the mark, Davies said.
Trump returned some of the intimacy, even gushing over how impressed he was by Keir’s “beautiful, great” wife Victoria.
But – according to Davies – the men were “acting out a pantomime” and don’t truly like each other much.
RexThe pair were all smiles during the joint press conference[/caption]
RexStarmer stuck to his lines carefully, desperate not to misstep[/caption]
RexBrits hope the meeting will prove the start of a prosperous relationship between the world leaders[/caption]
Bucy said Starmer proved “effective in charming and disarming Trump’s argumentative side” – which is vital for any progress.
Keir followed Trump’s lead by pairing the initial handshake with “equal emphasis on arm touches”, which is a show of affection.
Bucy added: “For Starmer, the move closes the distance between himself and Trump before negotiations, helping to defuse any frostiness.”
The jolly into like like “two old chums from uni days greeting each other after a long absence apart”, the prof said.
Signing off the day of niceties, Trump even praised Starmer on his “beautiful accent”.
WALKING ON EGGSHELLS
The PM wisely “gave Trump the limelight” as a “sacrifice for more bargaining power behind the scenes”, Bucy said.
Davies agreed that Starmer crept around “on tiptoe” like he was “visiting his mother-in-law’s house for the first time”.
The PM was “walking on eggshells” because he knew that any misstep could be fatal.
“It’s like Keir was reminding himself: ‘I must laugh at their jokes, mustn’t swear, mustn’t make a mess of the bathroom,’” Davies said.
Starmer literally took a back seat by shuffling all the way into his chair, and reclining cross-legged.
Trump, on the other hand, sat forward “with his buttocks hanging off- so as to take the lead”, Davis said.
Keir Starmer had to “rock and roll” with Trump’s gushing over Victoria – even though it grated against his stiffness.
In Starmer, we finally have someone who has learned that you “mustn’t take offence to Donald Trump, no matter how offensive he is”, so he did well to brush off the cheeky Russia jibe.
ReutersTrump even told Starmer he loved his British accent[/caption]
HOT AIR
The meeting also passed without hitch because the men avoid anything too thorny, according to the experts.
Davies said that, while Starmer did well to survive, we “didn’t learn very much” from the whole charade.
Both men were drawing “devil’s donuts” with their answers – by circling back round to the “exact same place” with “nothing of value in the middle”, Davies explained.
Likewise, Bucy said Trump’s body language showed he was being non-commital.
Lots of “shoulder shrugs”, “downward gazes” and “subtle head shakes” revealed his reluctance to say anything too meaningful, the professor said.
He also noticed Trump was “unable to look straight at the reporter” who asked him about Ukrainian security guarantees – his way of “deflecting and shrugging off” the question.
Trump’s “high blink rate” could suggest he was even stressed at points.
Bucy said that when pulled up on his smear of Zelensky as a dictator, Trump flashed a “quick downward glance” and “licked his lips”, which shows he was caught off-guard and “had to grasp for an answer on the fly”.
Davies said: “Overall, the meeting was probably as Starmer could have hoped for, because there was no win available in this situation.
“There was only reasonably upbeat survival, and he certainly managed that.”
Keir Starmer flies home a happy man after passing first Special Relationship test with Trump
By Harry Cole, The Sun’s Political Editor
AS love-ins go, that will take some beating – Sir Keir Starmer flew home a happy man last night.
Beautiful! Special! Golf! It was vintage Donald Trump.
Close to nauseating at some points, there was stroking of arms and stroking of one monster ego.
The President can be a temperamental and irritable menace at times, but he was in full gushing mode at the White House last night.
And the PM almost looked like he believed it when he said “it’s good to know that we have a true friend in the Oval Office.”
“I think you are trying to find a divide between us that does not exist,” Sir Keir insisted at the first whiff of awkward questions.
The stakes could not be higher, and with the help of a trump card in the shape of King Charles, his visit could barely have gone better.
His controversial Chagos deal was all but rubber stamped, and the pain of tariffs looks set to be avoided with new trade talks.
While Trump softened his tone on Ukraine, there is still a muddle lingering however on what protections the US really are willing to provide.