During a brief inauguration concert speech Wednesday evening, President Biden echoed his calls for unity in order to address the nation’s most pressing challenges.
“This is a great nation. We’re good people. And to overcome the challenges in front of us requires the most elusive of all things in a democracy: unity,” Biden said. “It requires us to come together in common love of what defines us as Americans: opportunity, liberty, dignity and respect, and to unite against common foes: hate, violence, disease and hopelessness.”
Since he delivered the speech at the Lincoln Memorial, however, he was on federal land, which had some scratching their heads. The reason, of course, is that just hours earlier, the president signed an executive order requiring mask-wearing on federal property.
It is the policy of my Administration to halt the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by relying on the best available data and science-based public health measures. Such measures include wearing masks when around others, physical distancing, and other related precautions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Put simply, masks and other public health measures reduce the spread of the disease, particularly when communities make widespread use of such measures, and thus save lives.
Accordingly, to protect the Federal workforce and individuals interacting with the Federal workforce, and to ensure the continuity of Government services and activities, on-duty or on-site Federal employees, on-site Federal contractors, and other individuals in Federal buildings and on Federal lands should all wear masks, maintain physical distance, and adhere to other public health measures, as provided in CDC guidelines. (White House)
Here's Biden addressing the media, all of whom are wearing masks, while he continues to not wear a mask pic.twitter.com/J5XlCY4uzi
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) January 21, 2021
He did put it on after he spoke, but as Saavedra (and others) showed, he had it off when he wasn't speaking.
Biden wasn’t the only one who broke his new rules. His grandchildren were seen taking a photograph without them, although they, too, did put them on later.
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The older Biden grandkids, plus Ashley Biden in a chic tux, take pictures at the Lincoln Memorial. pic.twitter.com/P0C57DooyX
— Jennifer Epstein (@jeneps) January 21, 2021
The move led Republican commentator Paris Dennard to name Biden the "hypocrite in chief."
Hypocrite in Chief. You can’t seriously do things like this and think people will follow, trust or think you are really serious when you say you care, understand or want to unite.
— PARIS (@PARISDENNARD) January 21, 2021
Liberals keep forcing us to bend to their rules they don’t follow themselves. #Inauguration2021 https://t.co/ciwFcPbMmi
