On bringing presents to DC - Jim Tankersley and Christopher F. Schuetze in NYT:

‘When Germany’s newly installed chancellor, Friedrich Merz, arrives at the White House on Thursday he is hoping to position himself as the most influential German leader on the world stage since the heyday of Angela Merkel.
Mr. Merz, who took office in early May, is jockeying to lead Europeon international trade, security and the war in Ukraine. He aspires to be a steadying force and to make Germany indispensable to Europe’s effort to stand on its own feet.’

(…)

‘The Merz team knows how important the first meeting between the leaders is. Mr. Merz’s aides, who briefed reporters in advance of the visit, have spoken with advisers of other leaders who made the pilgrimage to Washington to ask about their experiences. Mr. Merz has spoken with many of those leaders himself, including a recent call with Mr. Ramaphosa.’

(…)

‘They believe the most important thing Mr. Merz will carry to Washington is a policy victory. German lawmakers recently moved to obliterate their hallowed borrowing limits and allow the country to spend 5 percent of its annual economic product on national defense.’

(…)

‘German officials appear cautiously optimistic that Mr. Merz will have a successful, brief first trip to Washington.
Mr. Merz spent a significant amount of time in the United States while working as a lawyer for a Chicago law firm. Unlike previous chancellors, he speaks English well and easily. The translator who usually accompanies the chancellor on such trips will stay home, according to government officials.
The chancellor has already had several telephone conversations with Mr. Trump and generally the men appear to have a good rapport. The two leaders have reportedly exchanged telephone numbers and have been sending texts, addressing each other by their first name, a departure for the usually rather formal German leader. Mr. Merz was set to spend Wednesday night at Blair House, the official state guest residence across the street from the White House.
Mr. Merz also invited Mr. Trump to Kallstadt, the village from where the American President’s paternal grandparents emigratedfrom in the late 19th Century. In the German leader’s telling, Mr. Trump accepted, but nobody on the German side expects the visit to happen soon. There has not been a formal acceptance from the White House.
The German team has also put some thought into the gifts Mr. Merz is bringing, though they won’t say what they are. (The bar is high: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivered an invitationto visit King Charles. Qatari officials gifted Mr. Trump a luxury jet.) On Monday, a government spokesman told curious reporters that they would have to wait until Thursday to see what Mr. Merz has brought Mr. Trump.’

Read the article here.

Machiavelli famously said that the prince should be both loved and feared.

The president prefers fear.

A visit to him has become like an act for the tamer and the lion. Put your head in the lion's mouth, bring a present for the predator, hoping your head won't come off.

And no translator is needed.