White House cancels Biden speech upon news of queen’s death
Return to menuBy Mariana Alfaro
The White House canceled the president’s Thursday afternoon speech on the coronavirus vaccine upon learning of Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
Biden was expected to make a public plea for Americans to get updated coronavirus vaccine shots and also detail his administration’s plans to make the omicron-targeting boosters widely available this fall. The White House did not say whether the president’s remarks would be rescheduled for a later date.
News of the queen’s death broke as White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre wrapped up her press briefing Thursday afternoon.
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Pelosi orders Capitol flags to be flown at half-staff after queen’s death
Return to menuBy Amy Wang
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has ordered the flags at the U.S. Capitol to be flown at half-staff due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Within moments of the news of the death of the British monarch at age 96, numerous members of Congress issued condolences and remembrances.
The American flag is typically flown at half-staff during periods of mourning for U.S. officials and tragedies, but occasionally is flown at half-staff to mark the death of foreign dignitaries.
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Here’s how the accession of the new monarch works
Return to menuBy Claire Parker
After the British monarch dies, his or her replacement takes over immediately.
A series of formal steps, carefully choreographed over centuries, are set into motion. An “Accession Council” typically meets within 24 hours of the monarch’s death, usually at St. James’s Palace, where many important events in royal history have taken place. The last family occasion to take place there was the 2018 christening of Prince Louis, the youngest son of Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge.
The council formally declares the death of the monarch and the accession of the successor to the throne, according to the Privy Council, a formal advisory body to the monarch. The Accession Council is presided over by the lord president of the Privy Council — currently Penny Mordaunt, a Conservative MP and the leader of the House of Commons. The mayor of London and high commissioners of the “realms” — the 14 Commonwealth countries in which the queen remains the head of state — are also invited.