Cockburn was glued to the television during the memorial and funeral services for Queen Elizabeth II — naturally. There were many highlights, but Donald Trump made sure to spotlight on one of the more unfortunate lowlights of the week’s events, surrounding our very own President Joe Biden.
During the funeral service at Westminster Abbey, you see, Biden and First Lady Jill were seated “in the 14th row… only seven rows from the very back,” reports Business Insider.
This led Trump to roast the Bidens on Truth Social, declaring that the less-than-stellar seating situation would have been different if he were still commander-in-chief:
Indeed, Cockburn had trouble picking out the Bidens, who blended into a blur of the more than 500 other dignitaries in attendance. Many media outlets have excused the seating arrangement by explaining, as Forbes did, that it was “dictated by strict royal protocol that ranks Commonwealth nations ahead of others attending.”
Still, it seems rather odd that the head of a nation as large, powerful, and influential as the United States would be relegated to the nosebleed section. So Cockburn poured himself some gin — a favorite of the Queen — and considered all angles. Perhaps Biden is humble and asked to be seated in the way back, as he’s “a good Catholic” and knows “The last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Or maybe the Bidens fell victim to jet lag, were running late (did he get on the wrong bus?), and had to shuffle in the back to avoid making a scene. We’ve all been there.
It’s also possible the funeral organizers were aware of Biden’s predilection for gaffes (at one point, he appeared to fall asleep during the service) and were saving the president a lot of embarrassment.
Cockburn’s best working theory, though, is that Biden “got lost” on his way to his seat and somehow ended up “in the same row as China’s representative, vice president Wang Qishan.” After all, it wouldn’t be the first time Biden was in familiar territory with China.
