The Americans have done it again. A last-minute executive order from the White House, slipped through as the nation's 250th birthday approached. Donald Trump's face is to be embossed on every US passport issued from July 4th.
The design, unveiled by the State Department, features a stern, regal portrait in the watermark. Critics call it a gaudy homage to one man. The administration calls it 'a celebration of American spirit.
' For those of us across the pond, there's a quiet smugness. The British passport, with its intricate filigree and understated royal crest, remains the gold standard. The global benchmark.
Our Home Office sources confirm no such change is planned for Her Majesty's Passport. The reasoning? 'We don't need a personality cult,' said a Whitehall insider.
'Our monarchy does that job.' The US move is seen as a final, defiant act of Trumpism. A parting gift to his base.
But in the world of diplomatic one-upmanship, it's a curious play. Passport holders abroad already faced extra scrutiny. Now they carry a target on their travel documents.
Polling data shows 62% of Britons consider their passport superior. The Americans? They're busy arguing if the new design makes queueing at border control feel like a rally.
Revolt brewing? Unlikely. But the quiet satisfaction in the corridors of power here is unmistakable.
The game of prestige plays on.
