In what was perceived by some as an international snub, President Joe Biden was not in attendance on Saturday in London for the formal coronation of King Charles III as the monarch of the United Kingdom, choosing instead to send first lady Jill Biden in his place.
Now, in what may have been a retaliatory act, it has been pointed out that the U.S. first lady was seated all the way in the back row for the historical ceremony held at the prestigious Westminster Abbey, according to The Western Journal.
Also of note to some is the fact that Biden, accompanied by granddaughter Finnegan, a daughter of Hunter Biden, were not wearing clothes emblematic of the U.S. colors of red, white, and blue, but instead were garbed in the Ukrainian colors of pale blue and yellow.
Pictures from the coronation ceremony have been floating around social media since Saturday, including one that shows the Biden women seated in the back row behind all of the other guests who were in attendance.
US first lady Jill Biden slotted into a seat in the back row for King Charles' coronation. So highly respected.
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA. https://t.co/pAsAkLNr0z
— Dan Hill (@dandinohill) May 6, 2023
While that may possibly have been an intentional snub, it could less controversially simply be a result of alphabetical seating arrangements, as evidenced by a post from a Ukrainian government adviser who posted a picture prior to the start of the ceremony that showed the U.S. first lady speaking with her Ukrainian counterpart before other guests had arrived.
Ukrainian First Lady @ZelenskaUA with US First Lady Jill Biden and her granddaughter at the coronation of King Charles today.
Such elegant ladies! 💙💛 pic.twitter.com/PU3NKXca5a
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) May 6, 2023
Despite the debate over whether or not President Biden snubbed King Charles III by not attending the coronation ceremony, the New York Post reported that no U.S. president has ever attended the coronation of a U.K. monarch -- though carefully chosen high-ranking delegations have traditionally been sent in the president's place.
That tradition began with the coronation of King George V in 1911, thanks to steamships that made swift cross-Atlantic travel possible, and continued with the coronations of George VI in 1937 and Elizabeth II in 1953 -- with each of those respective delegations including top-ranked military and government officials.
However, the Post noted that President Biden sent no official delegation to the coronation on Saturday, and in fact, Jill and Finnegan Biden were there simply as ordinary guests and not formal representatives of the United States or the administration.
Along those lines, Nile Gardiner, a former top aide to late U.K. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, tweeted on Saturday, "Leaders from across the world are attending today's Coronation of King Charles III. Even the French President is there. Notably absent is Joe Biden, who could not be bothered. What message does this send to America's closest ally? Biden is a petty, arrogant, sneering disgrace."
Former President Donald Trump also weighed in with a Truth Social post that said, "Joe Biden should have been at the Coronation of King Charles III. Is that really so much to ask? The people of the U.K. are greatly insulted. No wonder we are losing support all over the World. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!"
For what it is worth, the first lady gushed to the Associated Press about how the "beauty in the pageantry of the ceremony" was "amazing to see" -- though it is unclear how much she was even able to see from behind everybody else in her back row seats.
"You can’t imagine that moment where you actually see the crown being placed on the head of the king and then on the head on the queen," she added. "It’s really surreal to see and experience that moment."
