No Stolen Land Acknowledgment! Instead King and President Extol Sentimental Ties. Breaking Up: U.A.E. & OPEC. Indictments: Fauci Ally and Comey. Old Indomitables. More

Well, it was all quite refreshing.

King Charles made a playful allusion to the Brits’ unfortunate behavior in 1814 and offered a heartfelt tribute to the shared heritage of two great nations. No stolen land acknowledgment, you’ll be glad to hear, even though we did sort of make off with a sizeable chunk of Charles’ former empire.

Earlier in the day, King Charles III addressed a joint session of Congress (excerpt here). The King’s hometown weekly, the London Spectator, commented on the royal visit:

President Trump lavished praise upon King Charles from the Oval Office at the outset of his four-day state visit to the United States. The US president called the monarch ‘a man of class’. ‘It’s great to have a king in here,’ he said. A conspicuous absence of ‘No Kings’ protests in the presence of a real king had not gone unnoticed. But it was Charles’s address to a joint session of Congress that was eagerly awaited on both sides of the Atlantic.

His most substantial public speech since he acceded the throne in September 2022, there was a good deal riding on its success. His mother had addressed Congress in May 1991. Her text was an uncontroversial message of ‘collaboration and respect’ between the two nations. Then, as now, the speech took place against the backdrop of war in the Middle East – the Gulf War had concluded a few months before. But the stakes were higher this time round, for any number of reasons. The assassination attempt on Trump on Saturday being only the most recent.

King Charles was here as the anti-Starmer. Prime Minister Keir Starmer infuriated President Trump when he denied the U.S. use of U.K. air bases and airspace in the Iran conflict. The King did an excellent job for his country. “The King has proved he is the only British leader Trump will listen to,” U.K. Telegraph royals expert Hannah Furness writes.

One of the King’s assignments was to make the case for NATO. Furness isn’t certain that that message was thoroughly received. The resolutely anti-Trump New York Times churlishly discovered “subtle rebuttals” to the president in the King’s overall remarks. Charles came with the perfect present for President Trump—a golden bell from HMS Trump, a World War II submarine. The Queen in historic jewelry and the First Lady in a shade of pink that complemented the Queen’s gown were dazzlers. The merry monarch and the not-King of the U.S. looked like happy lads.

The president’s remarks at the dinner blew Ms. Must away. It was an ebullient and unabashed celebration of American and English civilization and ties. The president got so carried away that he said something nice about the Crusades! I’d wager that the speechwriter has read “Albion’s Seed,” one of my favorite books, by David Hackett Fischer, about the English settlement of the 13 colonies. It’s a fabulous story that in no way diminishes the contributions of others who have come [legally] to our shores. Fischer himself wrote a subsequent book on African Founders.

A Few More Dinner Notes. The Guest List. The Menu. The Pageantry and the Protocol. Charles and Camilla’s Next Stop.

While the King and the non-King celebrated unity, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) celebrated disunity by suddenly dumping OPEC. This is a major blow to the OPEC cartel:

“The decision to withdraw from OPEC is part of a broader decision by the U.A.E. to chart its own path when it comes to alliances,” said Eric Alter, the dean of the Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy in Abu Dhabi, which is close to the Emirati government.

The U.A.E. said it would also exit OPEC+, a group of major oil producers that includes Russia, and gradually increase production afterward, it added.

“Its departure therefore removes one of the core pillars underpinning OPEC’s ability to manage the market,” said Jorge Leon, head of geopolitical analysis at consulting firm Rystad Energy and a former energy demand analyst at OPEC. “Losing a member with 4.8 million barrels a day of capacity, and the ambition to produce more, takes a real tool out of the group’s hands.”

Heritage Foundation economist E. J. Antoni addressed the great OPEC crackup at Townhall:

For decades, the UAE has been part of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which has artificially limited global oil supplies and thereby put upward pressure on prices. … The idea behind the cartel was simple: gather all the major oil-producing countries into a room and agree to act like a monopoly, thereby maximizing profits at the expense of the rest of the world. …

So, while the UAE’s decision is significant, it’s not necessarily a death knell for OPEC, which has seen other members come and go over the last six decades. Rather, this move is the latest chapter in the story of American energy independence and energy dominance that is being kicked into high gear by pro-growth tax and regulatory reductions.

The energy world is a-changing. To that point, Iran’s economy is approaching a death spiral, as President Trump tells aides that the U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will continue. An editorial at the Wall Street Journal says that the UAE broke up with OPEC because of U.S. fracking and the Iran war.

OPEC isn’t the only thing that’s cracking. The alleged Covid cover-up wall is cracking. The stunning federal indictment of David Morens, longtime ally of Dr. Anthony Fauci, for allegedly concealing or destroying relevant documents, is a huge crack in the wall:

David Morens, 78, has been charged with one count of conspiracy against the United States; two counts of destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations; and two counts of concealment, removal, or mutilation of records.

The conspiracy also included an alleged “kickback” scheme where Morens took or was promised gifts — including wine bottles and meals at Michelin-starred restaurants — to conduct “official acts favorable” to a federal grantee.

Real Clear Investigations, which was on the Morens story before it broke, has a long analysis. The Washington Post portrays the indictment as catering to Trump supporters. More on Morens from Just the News. The same outlet gives its take on a new bombshell indictment of former FBI head James Comey. Some believe the Comey indictment should be eighty-sixed: Editors of The Free Press, for example, suggest it will backfire.

Meanwhile, Jason Riley suggests that the reclassification of pot could backfire. In today’s “To promote ‘social justice,’ don’t subsidize marijuana dealers. Protect the poor from street predators,” Riley argues today in his Wall Street Journal column.

Two Indomitable Presidents. Rich Lowry compares Andrew Jackson and Donald Trump. Both are assassination attempt survivors (Jackson ran at his would-be assassin with his walking cane). Lowry writes:

Trump isn’t a former general or wizened old Indian fighter like Jackson, but he partakes of the same spirit of aggressive defiance.

By all appearances, the least fearful people in the ballroom of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner were a random old man from New York who kept eating his dinner during the mayhem . . . and the target of the attack himself.

Donald Trump is one of the most indomitable figures in the history of our politics. No matter how much he’s mocked or hated, no matter how intense the controversy or how impossible the fix, no matter how dramatic the situation, he never breaks or loses his sense of command.

An indomitable Woman. Meghan Cox Gurdon has stood firm in the storm of vitriol that greeted her perfectly sensible response to celebrity chef/philanthropist Jose Andres silly, glass-encased message at Reagan National Airport.

In closing, former President Barack Obama’s gaffe about the WHCA shooter is just the Light Bringer’s latest porkie pie, according to New York Post writer Isaac Sshorr.