For the first time since coming to the White House, Joe and Jill Biden went out in Washington, DC on Saturday night - and quickly broke the city's mask rule. The president and first lady dined at Fiola Mare, a Georgetown seafood restaurant renowned with Washington's political class.
Everyone over the age of two must wear a mask inside, regardless of vaccination status, according to CDC advice and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser's executive order. According to the restaurant's website, masks must be worn at all times in our restaurants, save when eating and drinking.
President, the first lady went to a restaurant without masks
Despite this, the 78-year-old and his wife went around the restaurant without masks, while their Secret Service detail wore black face masks. Despite publicly urging people to use face masks as much as possible, the president was seen carrying his mask but not using it.
President Biden has regularly worn his mask in what some critics have dubbed political theater despite being adequately vaccinated. He has stated that he is determined to set himself apart from Donald Trump, known for snubbing head coverings and not being photographed wearing one until July 2020, five months after instances began to arrive on US shores.
In August, Mayor Muriel Bowser of DC restored the mask mandate, threatening restaurants, bars, and other liquor-serving facilities with penalties if they don't follow the regulations. The Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) will issue a warning for the first infraction and a $1,000 fine for the second, Daily Mail reported.
The DC liquor board will examine the liquor license of a business after three or more infractions. Restaurants are not obligated to request proof of vaccination or a negative test, as they are in New York.
White House refutes to comment on the issue
President Biden was seen without a mask inside a Washington, DC restaurant on Monday, but White House press secretary Jen Psaki dismissed the issue, stating that people should focus on the president's policies rather than "moments in time."
Psaki was questioned about a video showing Biden and first wife Jill Biden strolling into a high-end Georgetown restaurant without masks on Saturday, breaking Washington, DC's indoor mask law, at her daily press conference by Fox News' Peter Doocy.
Per Fox News, Psaki reacted by erroneously stating that the dispute was about a photo rather than a video and that the Bidens were going out of the restaurant rather than through it. Earlier this year, Washington, DC renewed its need for masks inside businesses; the city also mandates masks on public transit.
Individuals can be fined up to $1,000 under the mayor's executive order, although the penalty is seldom enforced; in most cases, violators are ordered to leave or escorted out of establishments.
The Republican National Committee was among many who shared the footage, tweeting, "WATCH: Joe Biden goes into an upscale Washington, DC restaurant sans a mask, breaking DC's mask law."
The incident, predictably, sparked fury on the right, with comments like "rules for thee, not for me" and "Hypocrites gonna hypocrite."
"Joe Biden's mask policy: Masks for thee, not for me," the House Republicans said. "Joe Biden: You have to wear a mask. But, I don't," the House Judiciary Committee Republicans tweeted, as per the Washington Times.
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