Donald Trump's 'power move' broken down by body language expert as King Charles praised for subtle gesture
Topics: King Charles III, Royal Family, US News, UK News, Donald Trump, Politics
Rhianna Benson
Featured Image Credit: PBS
Topics: King Charles III, Royal Family, US News, UK News, Donald Trump, Politics
A body language expert has addressed accusations that Donald Trump exerted a controversial 'power move' during his latest meeting with King Charles.
The British monarch arrived in Washington D.C. alongside Queen Camilla on Monday (27 Apr) to commence their State Visit, after which they were transported to the White House to meet with the US President and First Lady.
Footage of the powerful foursome's initial interaction has since spread like wildfire on social media, with users zooming in on Trump's mannerisms while he reached out for the King's hand.
According to onlookers, the 79-year-old American reached out a hand to Charles before attempting to pull it in towards his midriff. The same users also hailed the King, 76, for standing strong against Trump's tug.
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"Trump is trying his toxic beta-male handshake, and Charles is having absolutely none of it," one critic noted.
Another claimed: "Charles knows this guy. Trumps handshake is aggressive and Charles shut it down."
"Body language says it all," a third added. "Charles doesn't flinch, Trump looks like he's overcompensating."
A fourth went on: "Proud of King Charles. You can clearly see the tugging in the handshake, the King pulled back more than once as well."
Several critics also took aim at Trump for another clip, in which he can be seen placing his hand on the King's arm as the pair make their way to the White House, allegedly breaking royal protocol.
Despite these assertions, several body language experts have since chimed in on the debate - and oddly, many have stood in Trump's defence, including Judi James, who described the Republican's behaviour as 'relaxed'.
"This touch on the arm as they walked in also looked like a more political gesture," she told The Mirror. "It was also the first real gesture of active, 'special' friendship here from a rather more subdued Trump than the very effusive rituals we saw during their last meeting [in September 2025].
"Charles has always seemed more relaxed about that than his mother, and Trump's gesture was extremely tempered for Trump. Just a light, tentative and rather polite touch to steer Charles inside."
Another human behaviour expert, Darren Stanton, agreed with James' comments, claiming Trump actually toned down his usually firm handshake as a sign of respect to the King.
"He showed open palm gestures, which is to do with honesty and transparency," he told Tyla on behalf of CasinoHawks. "If you zoom in on the handshake between him and King Charles, he does use this 'push pull' technique to show assertiveness, but he didn’t pull him back and forth to the degree he does with politicians, which suggests he actually admires the King somewhat."
Stanton continued: "Trump didn’t try any overbearing techniques he usually does with any other politicians. This shows an immense amount of respect for the monarch: to do the open palm gesture was quite significant from Trump.
"He gives another tap with his left hand while he’s shaking hands on the King’s left arm."
He concluded: "In certain contexts, that could be considered a power gesture to undermine, but because Trump didn’t do this back-and-forth technique, it’s a way of building rapport and Trump and to show he has respect for the King."