During a reception at the White House on Thursday, President Joe Biden awkwardly clasped French President Emmanuel Macron’s hand for 42 seconds.
After Biden ended his short statement, in which he underlined the significance of the partnership between the United States and France, the two presidents shook hands.
In a hug and conversation, Biden grasped Macron’s hand as the audience heard a French translation of the last few sentences of his address.
Macron repeatedly tried to break the hug as the two stood there joking, laughing, and slapping each other’s arms, but Biden resisted and didn’t let go.
While Macron was caught facing the president with his hand held firmly in Biden’s, Biden once turned to face the audience and froze in place with a smirk on his face.
After the French translation was finished, the couple ultimately separated.
It’s not clear whether Biden struck that position for the cameras or if he was merely waiting for the translation to be finished before releasing Macron.
The embarrassing incident began the state visit of the French president to Washington, DC, and was swiftly followed by a few additional strange blunders by Biden.
After the speech, Biden and Macron remained on stage, facing the audience and standing next to each other while cameras seemed to be clicking away.
Biden briefly turned to face Macron at one point and gave him a five-second gaze.
Then Biden almost entirely turned around and faced away from the throng.
Biden eventually turned around to face the cameras as Macron started speaking to the president and made a motion toward the audience.
Biden seemed to be aimlessly wandering off the platform while the two presidents addressed audience members, and Macron had to keep bringing him back to the group.
The French president stayed attentive to the audience, but as Biden started to leave, Macron grabbed his arm and pulled him back into the throng.
On Tuesday night, the Macrons flew into the country, and their tour began with an unexpected jab at their hosts.
In a foreshadowing of a difficult encounter, Biden received harsh criticism from the French president for his economic supports.
According to a reporter for Agence France-Presse, Biden’s industrial subsidies are’super aggressive’ against French rivals. This is according to Macron.
At a meal on Wednesday, Macron was overheard telling congressional members and business executives, “This is incredibly aggressive for our business people.”
He warned legislators that unless the rules are coordinated internationally, they would “destroy a lot of jobs” in Europe.
Following their private discussion, Biden defended his strategy for reviving the American economy, which calls for investing $368 billion in green manufacturing for American businesses.
I don’t apologize for it,” he said.
But in an attempt to reduce tension, he acknowledged that his historic law had “glitches” that must be corrected in order to prevent damage to Europe.
He acknowledged, “There’s certainly going to be problems in it and [we] need to reconcile adjustments in it,” without specifying what exactly they may be.
They are “tweaks that we can do that can essentially make it simpler for European nations to join,” according to him.
A black-tie state supper at the White House, complete with champagne toasts and famous guests, marked the end of the day.
The presidents shook hands while discussing the long-standing relationship between their two countries.
Our first alliance was France. After our revolution, the first nation to fly an American flag,” remarked Biden. I was born and raised in New Castle, Delaware County, not far from the Brandywine Battlefield. where a young soldier by the name of Marquis de Lafayette fought for the Americans and became close to a guy by the name of George Washington.
“It was such simplicity that two friends were connected by the noblest of reasons,” Lafayette later wrote of their connection. The greatest causes that still unite us today are democracy, liberty, equality, opportunity, and freedom,’ the president said.
He said, “We stick up for one another in our democratic beliefs to which Washington and Lafayette committed their lives. We stand together against tyranny and injustice.” And in the knowledge that we can always, always depend on one another as allies and friends, we continue to work to create a world worthy of our greatest dreams and our future.
The server delivered two champagne flutes on stage, and the presidents raised their glasses when Biden invited the guests to do so. God bless America and viva la France, exclaimed Biden.
In his toast, Macron said, “Beloved Joe, my dear buddy.”
The French president said that people “live in democracy and freedom” in both France and the United States.
The French president said: “And in many places today, these values are at danger or questioned, even in our communities, in our democracies. Many individuals merely want to imperil or backtrack from this principle, dispute elections, and so on. We stand together shoulder to shoulder.”
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