What was supposed to be a handshake between the leaders of two friendly countries turned into a 10-second tug-of-war on Monday.
When Donald Trump and his wife, Melania Trump, greeted England’s King Charles and Queen Camila at the White House, the president decided to engage in his trademark “clasp and yank” handshake.
For those not in the know, that’s where he pulls the hand of the other person toward him ― sometimes multiple times ― and vigorously shakes it up and down while patting the person with his other hand, as in this animated video.
As you can see from the actual video of their meeting, the king didn’t fall for the attempt at alpha male dominance and appeared to stand firm.
Trump has used the “clasp and yank” technique many times while meeting world leaders, and it’s so notorious that there is a Wikipedia page dedicated to his handshakes.
