On Tuesday, during the first press briefing since First Lady Jill Biden tested positive for COVID, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre shared that while President Joe Biden texted negative Monday night and earlier on Tuesday, "he will be masking while indoors and around people in alignment with CDC guidance." As it turns out, though, the president is already contradicting the information that Jean-Pierre relayed, and those CDC guidelines.
KJP TODAY: Biden "will be masking while indoors and around people."
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 5, 2023
BIDEN HOURS LATER: 🚫😷 pic.twitter.com/dBBR7rBr3x
A short time after the press briefing, the president gave remarks at the presentation of the Medal of Honor to Army Captain Larry L. Taylor. It was a typical appearance from the president, as he fumbled people's names and bolted without taking questions, though in this case he even missed the concluding prayer.
Although the president wore a mask while standing at the front when he was not speaking, he removed it to speak and then did not put it back on. This included when standing in close proximity of others, and when fleeing the event.
Joe Biden just BOLTED out of the room immediately after awarding the Medal of Honor to Army Captain Larry Taylor.
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 5, 2023
The ceremony continued on for several minutes afterwards.
Biden completely missed a concluding prayer. pic.twitter.com/BjSdeHcLPD
The White House is already pushing yet another COVID booster on the American people, with the president last month having asked Congress to approve more funding for it. For some time now, Jean-Pierre has been saying they "encourage" Americans to get that boosters. This included during Tuesday's briefing.
KJP: "We encourage Americans to get those vaccines. We know that these vaccines work, right?" pic.twitter.com/oID04lnfnp
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) September 5, 2023
Who's to say that the White House won't push masks further next? Some colleges and universities and now even elementary schools are bringing mask mandates back.
If the president can't follow CDC guidelines, in this case when it comes to wearing masks indoors, it's worth wondering how the White House can expect the rest of us to follow them.