President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden blatantly disregarded Washington, D.C.’s mask mandate on Sunday night to dine at Fiola Mare, an expensive seafood restaurant on the Potomac River.
In videos posted to social media, the unmasked couple is seen being escorted through the pricey harbor restaurant by masked Secret Service agents. The president appears to be holding a mask in his hand but the first lady’s face covering is nowhere in sight.
WATCH: Joe Biden walks through an expensive Washington, D.C. restaurant without a mask, violating D.C.'s mask mandate. pic.twitter.com/lZDDFbhjZT
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 17, 2021
Biden has long touted masks as one solution to the ongoing pandemic and even expressed explicit support for mandating face coverings. His devotion to carrying out what he has previously called the “patriotic duty” of wearing a mask, however, was not present on Sunday evening as he wined and dined with his wife.
Since July, D.C. Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser has mandated that all people, regardless of vaccination status, must wear masks in most indoor settings unless actively eating or drinking.
“Masks protect the wearer and protect other people. Choosing not to wear a mask puts your own health as well as the health of others at risk (such as people who are immunocompromised and may not be fully protected from the vaccine, and people
who are not yet eligible to get the vaccine like children under the age of 12),” Bowser’s order states.
The restaurant also has a masking policy that requires masking for patrons over 2 years old who aren’t actively eating their meal.
“Per CDC guidance and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser’s executive order, all individuals over age 2 are required to wear a mask indoors, regardless of vaccination status. Masks must be always worn while in our restaurants, except while eating and drinking. Thank you for understanding,” the restaurant states on its website.
This restaurant fiasco, which is similar to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “rules for me but not for thee” French Laundry dining experience, is not the first window into Biden’s willingness to violate the oppressive rules he claims to support for Americans.
In January, the president signed an executive order mandating the use of masks on all federal property. Hours later, Biden and his family were spotted parading around the Lincoln Memorial without face coverings during inauguration celebrations.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki defended the president by claiming that “he was celebrating an evening of a historic day in our country.” When pressed further on the issue, Psaki merely shrugged off a reporter’s concerns about political hypocrisy and said the administration has “bigger things to worry about” than Biden’s blatant disregard for the rules he imposed on Americans.
Biden is one of many Democrat elites who profit from promoting universal masking while shamelessly violating those orders.