Democratic Party’s congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez posted a photo of herself and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on social media during President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Tuesday evening that some users believe inadvertently exposed him for hypocrisy.
Sanders appeared to be one of the only members of Congress to have worn a mask to the event, which drew praise from several people online who noticed.
“Wearing a good quality face mask as Sanders did protected not only him but also anyone else he might have interacted with during and after the State of the Union address”, Forbes’ Bruce Y. Lee wrote. “And that’s going to be especially important if Sanders interacted with anyone at higher risk for more severe Covid-19”.
“Bernie Sanders is the only person wearing a KN95 mask at the #StateOfTheUnionAddress. Respect that man – @SenSanders thank you”, tweeted Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist and health economist.
But then “AOC” posted a photo showing Sanders, maskless, smiling with her and several others on the floor of Congress, and that drew responses from other Twitter users suggesting that Sanders’ mask was just political theater.
State of the Union ✅ pic.twitter.com/4mGyVEF2NZ
— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@RepAOC) February 8, 2023
“So the mask really was just for the cameras”, wrote journalist Keean Bexte.
“Step one: wear mask to crowded place Step two: get in middle of crowd and remove mask,” another user noted.
“State of the ‘science’”, noted another user with a side-by-side collage of photos showing Sanders masked and unmasked.
“So this old dude still has a mask on his face, but who moves it down for the photo. I guess COVID doesn’t hit when you take a picture”, another user noted sarcastically.
“I am once again telling you masks are essential except when posing in large crowds with fellow Democrats”, said another.
In December, a close advisor to Sanders, who is 81 years old, said that he would “take another look” at a presidential bid, CBS News reported.
“I assume that he would give it a hard look”, Faiz Shakir, who managed Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign, said. “I don’t want to make the judgment for him. Obviously, it would be his choice to make. But I assume that he would want to reevaluate it”.
He said that the senator is “very aware that he’s older now and he’d have to make a real judgment about his own vigor and his stamina and his desire and hunger and passion to do this a third time. But if it were an open field?
Yeah, I’m confident he would take another look at it and say, ‘Do I want to do this or not?’”
“Personally, I take President Biden at his word and our orbit takes him at his word that he’s taking it seriously and presume that he is leaning toward yes”, he said.
Biden has not formally declared whether he will run for re-election in 2024, but first lady Jill Biden reportedly confirmed it during a state dinner late earlier that month with an important US ally.
“Jill Biden, the first lady, told President Emmanuel Macron of France at the White House state dinner last week that she and her husband are ready for his re-election campaign, according to two people with knowledge of the discussion. President Biden then joined the French president and the first lady in a playful toast”, the New York Times reported.
“It was a lighthearted moment — and Mr. Biden still intends to make a formal decision about whether he will run again after the holiday season — but the fact that the Bidens were willing to signal to an important foreign ally about the president’s plans hints at how committed they are to a second term,” the Times continued. “The interaction also offered a window into the thinking of Dr. Biden, who has been held up as a decisive voice in her husband’s deliberations”.
While Biden has not made any official announcements on his plans, reports have already circulated that he may ditch Vice President Kamala Harris if he does decide to run in 2024.
In a scathing piece published by Slate before Christmas, Christina Cauterucci noted how “we are stuck with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris” for now but that Biden may be able to “change that” going into next year.
