White House Defends Joe Biden Maskless ‘Moment’ at D.C. Restaurant

The White House defended President Joe Biden on Monday for not wearing his mask while leaving a Washington, DC, restaurant on Saturday.

“I would say, of course, there are moments when we all don’t put masks back on as quickly as we should,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during the daily press briefing, urging reporters to not “lose the forest from the trees” of Biden’s overall support for masks.

Psaki said the incident was one of Biden’s “moments in time that don’t reflect overarching policy.”

A patron of the Georgetown seafood restaurant shared video of the president and first lady Jill Biden leaving the restaurant without wearing their masks. Biden was spotted holding his mask as he walked out.

The Republican National Committee shared the video on social media, calling out the president’s hypocrisy.

Washington, DC, currently has an indoor mask mandate in place in response to the surge of the Delta variant of the coronavirus.

Biden has repeatedly endorsed mask mandates, including in a September visit to a Middle School in Washington, DC.

“We know masks work. They are uncomfortable sometimes, and they get tired of wearing them. I understand. I really do,” he said. “And I wear them in the White House.”