Barack Obama's Queen Toast Turns Awkward (VIDEO)

A traditional sequence took a strange turn on Tuesday evening as President Barack Obama dined with the Queen.

Obama was delivering a toast to the Queen, not unusual, but what happened next was. He fumbled -- or the orchestra was in error, you be the judge -- leaving the Queen to look extremely uncomfortable.

The toast went awry after Obama said, "I propose a toast. To her majesty the Queen." The orchestra thought he was done, and began playing God Save The Queen. But he wasn't. And Obama continued his toast as the song played in the background.

ABC's Jake Tapper transcribed the contents of the toast:

"The vitality -" the president said before the orchestra began. [...] The president kept going: " -- of the special relationship between our peoples and for the words of Shakespeare to this blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England," the president said as the awkward moment played out.

Even when Obama was done, no one raised their glass and the toast was halted until the song completed. In other words, there were several seconds of complete awkwardness. Finally, at the song's conclusion, glasses were raised.

At least one person in England came to Obama's defense following the unusual sequence. "I thought you did exactly the right thing," Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said.

Comments

[goodog]

08:19 PM on 06/09/2011

Talk about desperate for a gaffe. This is not a gaffe.

Inappropriate touching of a foreign dignitary or cussing out your chief wartime ally at a state dinner with your mouth full of food... those are gaffes.

This was simply the miscue of the orchestra.

[Charlie Fox]

12:11 AM on 05/31/2011

Hey look, President Obama went out into the world and said/did something dumb/funny. Just like every single President before him. Bush famously mispronounced almost every aspect of the English language. He also choked on a Pretzel once. Reagan nearly caused a nuclear war when he Broadcast: "I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. The bombing begins in five minutes." George Bush Sr. literally threw up on Japan's Prime Minister. John F. Kennedy famously said "I am a jelly donut." in mispronounced German. Our Presidents are just people, people with the world focused on them, so they (like all people) do a lot of stupid crap all the time. Think about all of the dumb stuff you do on a daily basis, now replace "groceries" with "world diplomacy" and "forgot cheese" with "bombed North Korea."

[Ptama]

09:32 PM on 05/28/2011

To all you folks dissing the POTUS on this one, I just can't see the guy you voted for, McCain, up there in that situation. Now that would have been a disaster.

[FZliveson]

03:42 PM on 05/28/2011

As long as the Fed doesn't get audited or the wars abroad ended, small gaffes like this are non-issues to anyone high up in our government.

[sj1ofakind]

05:04 AM on 05/28/2011

President Obama is not a subject of the Queen of England, therefore, he should not have to follow any type of protocol such as, not speaking unless she speaks to him, etc.

[PSchurman]

10:16 AM on 05/28/2011

Everyone wants to follow the protocol of a host/hostess but someone failed to apprise him of this particular part. I was appalled by the way both the Queen and Camilia the horse stood stone-faced and could not bring themselves to offer up quietly, a couple of words - i.e. 'not now' or 'after the anthem'. The Brits should be embarrassed by this one - bet they are not. As a Canadian, this angered me greatly.

[vobox3343]

11:21 AM on 05/27/2011

Yep, in the real world things happen. What's the big deal?

[Myriah007]

09:39 AM on 05/27/2011

she's just an old bitty----and she's making camilla look like she could be a better queen. haaaahhhh

[carsrus]

08:23 AM on 05/27/2011

He's too long winded! Sometimes Obama has to be less thinking ME,ME,ME, and LISTEN! Oh, Huff-AOL, guess it's better LATE than never-every other blog had this TIMELY!

[vobox3343]

11:24 AM on 05/27/2011

Everyone enjoys listening to a great orator (present company aside). Try and cheer up, then it won't be so bad for you his second term.

[Tess41]

02:34 PM on 05/27/2011

Sure, we all love listening to a great orator that actually speaks the truth and actually can speak without notes or a prompter. Sad, we don't seem to have one in our current President.

[Dick Stone]

06:27 AM on 05/27/2011

Every time he makes a television appearance, speaks to foreign dignitaries, or calls the police stupid and then invite them to a beer summitt, this President is an embarrasment wherever he goes and whatever he does. If he was to ever become President he should have worked really hard at being a Senator for a few years, matured, learned and prepared for the job. He is definitely not ready for prime time.

[carsrus]

08:25 AM on 05/27/2011

Dick-U r so right! PERHAPS had he been a Senator and WORKED at getting SOMETHING accomplished, he might have been ready to be President! Hillary was right, Can't have on the job training as PRESIDENT! Sadly, We are seeing his frequent blunders!

[PWM]

11:00 AM on 05/27/2011

What job training for POTUS did Hillary have?

[paulita]

02:15 PM on 05/27/2011

I love HIlary, however she is head of the State Department, aren't they responsible for protocol? Aren't they responsible to make sure every head of State knows Protocol.

So you think Reagan knew Britain's 10th century protocol?

You are saying nothing.

[vobox3343]

11:30 AM on 05/27/2011

Tell that to Palin, Trump and others to whom you have extended blind loyalty to. They could definately benefit from your Ms. Manners approach - Hardly

[Lisette]

03:35 AM on 05/27/2011

The Gaff was from the Brit's
And the Queen was most rude!
How dare she treat a guest like that! And the President of the United States!!!
She was very very wrong.

[carsrus]

08:26 AM on 05/27/2011

Take off your blinders, sweetpea!

[Myriah007]

09:43 AM on 05/27/2011

we get it already ----you don't like Obama :-P

[Lisette]

02:25 PM on 05/27/2011

carsrus
How dare she put tradition ahead of embarrassi­ng the President of the United States,
What is wrong with you?

[sj1ofakind]

05:11 AM on 05/28/2011

I'm still trying to figure out what protocol is when toasting the Queen. However, the President of the United States is NOT a subject of the Queen of England, therefore, she is not superior to him. She is only superior to her subjects, and that's only because they continue to allow such a thing as monarchy to exist in their country. That is their choosing and they have the right to hold on to tradition if they choose, but me, I am an American, therefore, I do not believe in monotheistic governments. What makes one person better than another? It certainly isn't determined by social class, birth status, or the amount of wealth that one has. It is determined by character, integrity, and respect for others.

[Lisette]

09:12 AM on 05/28/2011

sj1ofakind
I agree with you!
She just lives off her people
like a welfare recipient!

[Moarku]

02:56 AM on 05/27/2011

What breach of protocol? According to Tim Pawlenty, this was just another stop on a European pub crawl.

http://twitter.com/#!/timpawlenty/status/73857607261097985

[carsrus]

08:26 AM on 05/27/2011

CLEAVER!

[paulita]

02:14 PM on 05/27/2011

June and Ward.

[Moarku]

11:58 PM on 05/27/2011

Cleaver? I just met 'er!

[chuckwagon1223]

02:49 AM on 05/27/2011

they are not head of state

[chuckwagon1223]

02:47 AM on 05/27/2011

why do we care what they think he is are president we support our own .........

[carsrus]

08:26 AM on 05/27/2011

He's a bit of a dunce!

[Myriah007]

09:44 AM on 05/27/2011

so is your mama

[PWM]

11:01 AM on 05/27/2011

Yet not as much a dunce as Reagan or W.

[paulita]

11:55 PM on 05/26/2011

This is the apparent gaffe:

"So, what went wrong? After calling for the guests to stand, Mr Obama said “To Her Majesty The Queen”. If he had stopped here, this would be correct(ish). In Britain, the loyal toast is just ‘The Queen’. There is no ‘to’ preposition. This is what set off the orchestra from the Scotch Guards into playing the British national anthem, as they would be used to loyal toasts ending there."http://theenglishmanner.wordpress.com/
_____________________________________________________________________

It seems to me that the British equivalent of the State Department should fax to the U.S. State Department a notice of protocol if they are so concerned and this is the first State Dinner with another country's head of State.

Secondly, it also seems to me if you are royal and worried about protocol, your first concern should be graciousness. Therefore, if you hear the head of another country speaking, as a matter of graciousness, even if it is different than 10th century protocol, your band should not start playing until the toast is concluded.

The highest protocol should involve the highest manners, which is the burden of the hostess. Thus the only "gaffe," is ungraciouness in playing the "God Save the Queen" while the head of State, guest was offering a toast.

[judyc]

12:02 AM on 05/27/2011

I so agree with you!

[Moarku]

02:51 AM on 05/27/2011

I agree with you, apart from one thing. There is someone on the President's staff whose job it is to make sure protocol is being kept with foreign governments. Totally fair to say that both sides are responsible for the breakdown, but one way or another, he should have been told.

That being said, it does seem rather petty for the conductor not to have figured out what was going on and stop like you said.

[paulita]

02:10 PM on 05/27/2011

You are right; the protocol people should have cleared these issues up.

The conductor should have had the savvy to stop playing.

It is petty too and the Queen clearly loves the Obama and most likely felt bad and wasn't sure what to do.

It's the haters here that have the issues and just look for any reason to be critical, while the rest of the world thinks America has a great President.

[paulita]

02:10 PM on 05/27/2011

correction: "The Obamas."

[kejavas]

10:39 PM on 05/26/2011

errrrrrrrrrrr, uhhhhhhhhh, duhhhhhhhhhh.....thats what hussein sounds like with no teleprompter. Just plain s....t...u..p..id

[judyc]

12:03 AM on 05/27/2011

F U

[kejavas]

05:59 AM on 05/27/2011

typical LIEberal response

[Moarku]

02:52 AM on 05/27/2011

Demonstrably false. Hours and hours and hours of video are easily available which prove otherwise.

Why don't you just say he was born in Kenya while you're rehashing debunked smears?

[kejavas]

06:02 AM on 05/27/2011

Well when he does not have it he studders and stammers......Bush was actually not nearly as bad of a speaker as you LIEberals made him out to be-the LIEberal media smeared him well