\n In a new age of revolt, it took a king to remind America of its republican values: the rule of law, democracy and the power of its international example.\n <\/p>\n
\n King Charles III chooses his words with precision \u2014 as did his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Royal meaning must often be inferred. But by regal standards, his speech to a joint meeting of Congress on Tuesday was strikingly direct.\n <\/p>\n
\n Charles neither rebuked nor criticized the Trump administration.\n <\/p>\n
\n But the monarch implicitly frowned on America\u2019s current political direction and defended pillars of Western democracy: domestic checks and balances, alliances and interfaith tolerance.\n <\/p>\n
\n Charles further called for the strong defense of Ukraine. And \u201cnature,\u201d he said, must be protected \u2014 in a coded call for tackling climate change, which President Donald Trump has called<\/a> a \u201ccon job.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n And the King stressed that friends can disagree without fracturing forever bonds, an occluded reference to the \u201cspecial relationship<\/a>,\u201d which has been battered<\/a> by the UK\u2019s refusal to join the Iran war.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cAmerica\u2019s words carry weight and meaning, as they have since independence,\u201d Charles said, in the well of the House of Representatives. \u201cThe actions of this great nation matter even more.\u201d\n <\/p>\n