In the grand theater of political antics, a new episode played out at the funeral of Pope Francis. As fate would have it, Donald Trump and Joe Biden were both in attendance, yet their experiences couldn’t have been more different. Trump sat comfortably in the front row, mingling with world leaders, while Biden found himself a mere speck on the horizon, nestled four rows behind Trump, behind a pack of obscure foreign dignitaries. Imagine the horror! The leader of the free world buried behind everyday interns. Oh, how the mighty have stumbled.
While Trump basked in the limelight, Biden’s struggle with gravity threatened to steal the show. Assisted by his wife and what looked like a senior church usher, Biden navigated the Vatican steps with the grace of a cartoon character skidding on a banana peel. The spectacle raised eyebrows, and not because the audience was full of world leaders wearing sophisticated suits. In the land of celebrity politics, Biden’s slight misstep was the stuff of comedy – or tragedy, depending on your perspective.
And then there was the suit saga, another illustration of media misfire. Pictures of Donald Trump in a blue suit splashed across various outlets, triggering cries of a faux pas. The Vatican supposedly advised attire in somber black, which Trump, being the headline magnet he is, apparently ignored. Yet, in the world of selective journalism, it appears reality didn’t quite fit the narrative. When the camera pans out, behold, a sea of blue. Prince William, King Abdullah, and even someone not wearing a tie defied this dress code. The plot twist? Zelensky, who couldn’t even muster up a tie, chose the lighter side of fashion.
As this sartorial saga unfolded, one might wonder about the forgotten complaints involving a past interaction between Joe Biden and Pope Francis. In a rather alarming display of personal boundary ignorance, Biden once ventured to engage with the Pope in an overly friendly manner — much to the chagrin of an Argentine leader watching in bewilderment. This incident might not have garnered critique from the media, but perhaps it should’ve. You’d think the media would be more concerned about protocol-breakers snuggling up to the Pope than about fabric choices at a funeral.
So, as the curtain falls on another episode of global leadership theater, what remains? In true circus fashion, a misstep becomes news, a fabric becomes a fuss, and the act of who holds whose hand remains headline-worthy. The media might have its angles, but it’s safe to say that the world sees beyond the margin cuts, recognizing the show for what it is: an elaborate blend of entertainment and exaggeration.