Barack Obama Reveals Queen Elizabeth’s True Feelings About Brexit in New Book
A new book describes the Queen's good relationship with Obama and her candid views on the "biggest controversy in Great Britain."
As head of state, Queen Elizabeth was expected to remain politically neutral, leaving such decisions to elected officials. However, she was known to share her views privately, advising officials behind closed palace doors. Now, a new biography sheds light on her concerns during Brexit, with former US presidents spilling the details. Barack Obama, who was interviewed for the book, claimed that the late Queen confided in him about David Cameron's decision to call a referendum to settle divisions over the European Union.
American journalist Susan Page interviewed US Presidents Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Bill Clinton for her book, The Queen and Her Presidents: The Hidden Hand That Shaped History. In a conversation with Obama, who was asked about the Queen's relationship with the US, he revealed that she reportedly did not believe that a decision as big as the UK leaving the EU "should have been decided by a plebiscite." As reported by The Telegraph, he is quoted as saying, "She [the Queen] said, effectively, 'It's hard to understand why a prime minister, who presumably understands politics, would put a public referendum forward that he [David Cameron] didn't know what the answer would be of such importance.'"
Furthermore, Page described the late monarch's warm relationship with the former president, which explained her candid views on the "biggest controversy in Great Britain." She wrote, "Her [the Queen's] view on whether to leave the European Union was the subject of endless speculation during her reign and after her death." Her conversation with Obama reportedly took place in Windsor Castle in April 2016, two months after Cameron called the referendum. In the end, Cameron, who personally campaigned to remain in the EU, resigned the next day after the 'Leave' side, aka the side supporting Britain's separation from the EU, won.
Perhaps another surprising revelation in the book was the Queen's unfiltered view of Trump. Page alleged that the late monarch was 'baffled' by Trump's rise to power, and spoke about it with Obama during the same visit, three months before Trump won the Republican nomination. She reportedly asked Obama, "Why is this person [Trump] so close to running your country?" Moreover, the author also exposed the tensions behind Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's exit from The Firm, arguing that the Queen was 'stunned' by their constant criticism of the royal family.
As for the Queen's public stance on Brexit, media reports at the time claimed she supported leaving Europe, which the Palace swiftly denied. "In fact, at the fiercest time of the furore, she had expressed her real views to Obama," Page wrote. The UK officially left the EU in 2020, ending free movement and changing trade relations. New trade deals and border rules created both opportunities and challenges. Cameron's decision also triggered a period of political instability, with leadership changes and debates over how to carry out such a major process.
