President Joe Biden spent his Easter weekend at the presidential retreat at Camp David but kept everything he and his family did a secret.
The Easter holiday is typically quiet for most presidents, but they usually share some details about their weekend with the press or let the reporters follow them to church to demonstrate their public acknowledgment of the holy day celebrated by millions of Americans.
Biden considers himself a Catholic and typically attends Mass every weekend, but it was unclear if he even attended an Easter service.
The White House called a lid on Sunday morning at 10:43 a.m. for the press traveling with Biden to Camp David. They also did not even offer a basic readout of the president’s activities.
On Saturday, the White House called a lid at 10:14 a.m., noting Biden would remain at Camp David with his family for Easter Weekend.
The president left for Camp David on Friday afternoon, telling reporters he was looking forward to the weekend:
U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden walk to board Marine One as they depart from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 2, 2021. – The Bidens travel to the presidential retreat at Camp David in Maryland to spend the Easter weekend. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
“I hope you all have a good weekend,” he said, before adding with a chuckle, “I’m looking forward to it.”
Biden said Friday he would gather with family, even during the coronavirus pandemic because he and his wife had been vaccinated.
“Jill and I, we’re looking forward to an Easter celebration. We’re going to get together with family because we’ve had the great honor of being vaccinated. We may be able to get together with some of them this Easter,” he said during a conference call with faith leaders on Friday morning.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki confirmed Friday that Biden would spend time with family.
“I don’t have a specific number of family members, but I can assure you that the president is — strives to be a role model in every aspect of how he’s living in this difficult time we’re all going through,” Psaki said.
She did not offer further details about Biden’s plans for the break.
“He has a couple of grandkids who he sees when he goes to Delaware,” she added. “But it’s a limited group and certainly not the big Irish Biden clan that many of you have seen throughout the course of his time in public office.”
On Easter Sunday, Biden and first lady Jill Biden shared a video acknowledging the ongoing pandemic.
“Jill and I want to send you our warmest Easter greetings to you and your family,” Biden said. “As we celebrate this most holy day, we know many are still going without the family comforts of the season”:
Biden acknowledged that “for a second year,” many Americans “still feel the longing and loneliness of distance” and were “apart from family, their friends, and full congregations” at church.
He also urged Americans to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, calling it a “moral obligation” for pastors and their congregations.