The Bidens were late to the Queen's funeral so they were seated in the nosebleed section of Westminster Abbey

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Joe and Jill Biden arrived late for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. The blame is being placed on London traffic. Traffic was at a standstill at some point. By the time the leader of the free world and the missus arrived, they were relegated to the fourteenth row at Westminster Abbey. A piece in the Daily Wire calls it the nosebleed section.

Advertisement

The president was given special permission to use The Beast to travel to the funeral, unlike other world leaders who were put on a bus and rode together. The president being the president is given special accommodations, like using The Beast, because of extra security needs. At first it was reported that the Bidens would be expected to ride on the bus but then the funeral organizers backtracked. The downside to this is that The Beast was caught in traffic. So, the Bidens arrived at Westminster Abbey at 10:07 a.m. Unfortunately, the palace gave instructions to the foreign dignitaries that they must arrive between 9:35 and 9:55 a.m. to take their seats ahead of the official start time of the funeral at 11:00 a.m.

The Royal funeral schedule waited for no one, including the president. So, the fourteenth row it was.

Most of the time, when the President of the United States is late, people wait for him. This was not so at the funeral of the longest-serving British monarch, where international royalty and world leaders congregated by the dozens.

The Bidens were “gently” told, according to the Guardian, that they would have to wait to find their seats while a line of British veterans holding the honor of the George and Victoria Cross processed through the Abbey ahead of them. They followed the last of the military members down the main aisle to their seats.

Advertisement

The First Couple was placed behind Polish President Andrzej Duda and in front of the Czech Republic’s Prime Minister Petr Fiala. Jill Biden sat next to Switzerland’s President Ignazio Cassis. So much for Biden’s assertation that America’s back, baby!

Former President Trump weighed in for the first time about the funeral and Biden’s seating.

However, Trump insisted that Biden’s place at the funeral was the result of the U.K. having less “respect” for the U.S. due to his presidency. While making his first public comments on the funeral in a Truth Social post on Monday, the former president argued that if he were in office instead, he would have never been seated “back there.” He also said that Biden had been placed next to the leaders of Third World countries.

“This is what’s happened to America in just two short years,” Trump wrote alongside a photo of Biden being seated. “No respect! However, a good time for our President to get to know the leaders of certain Third World countries. If I were president, they wouldn’t have sat me back there—and our Country would be much different than it is right now!”

“In Real Estate, like in Politics and in Life, LOCATION IS EVERYTHING!!!” he added in a later post.

Usually Joe Biden embarrasses us by appearing dazed and confused during overseas events. This time it was for a much more mundane reason – being late. Why didn’t staff take into consideration the heavy traffic on this day in London and allow extra time to get to Westminster Abbey? The buses got there on time.

Advertisement

Jill Biden created her own stir for her choice of headwear at the funeral. She chose to wear a fascinator instead of a hat to the funeral service. I thought at the time I saw her arrive at Westminster Abbey that she was wearing some tacky looking headband like girls wear. Apparently it was supposed to be a fascinator. I couldn’t help but think that if Melania Trump was there, she’d be wearing a fabulous hat. Our current first lady tends to dress too young for her age and frequently looks out of place.

Accompanying her husband President Joe Biden, the first lady, 71, arrived to Westminster Abbey in London Monday donning a black Schiaparelli bespoke suit and fascinator — a piece of headwear requiring a clip, comb or headband to stay in place.

Fascinators are “often worn by women attending formal occasions such as weddings and events,” according to Fascinators Direct, an online collection of hats and fascinators.

You often see fascinators at joyous events, such as weddings. While they can be worn to somber events like funerals, the more accepted etiquette would be to wear a hat as a sign of respect.

Jill’s little headband thingy looked out of place among all the ladies in hats. She should have known better. At the very least, her personal stylist should have chosen something appropriate for her.

Advertisement

Only Biden and his plus one, his wife, were given invitations to the funeral. No former presidents were extended invitations due to space constraints. A memorial service for the Queen will be held in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday . All the former presidents are invited to that. Will Trump show up for it?

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Trending on HotAir Videos

Advertisement
Ed Morrissey 10:00 PM | November 20, 2024
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement