During a White House reception on behalf of a college women’s basketball team earlier this week, President Biden appeared stunned when a team member suddenly collapsed in the midst of the event.
On Friday, the White House hosted the Louisiana Sate University women’s basketball team, the LSU Tigers, for a speech in congratulations for that team winning the 2023 NCAA Championship in a final game against the University of Iowa’s Hawkeyes.
However, the event took a strange turn when one of the member’s of the LSU Tigers apparently fainted during the reception, causing brief alarm from those in the attendance.
A younger version of Biden may have handled the matter with greater finesse. In 2008, during a rally on behalf of then-presidential candidate Barack Obama, Biden instructed then-Missouri state Sen. Chuck Graham to stand up in recognition for his military service.
Biden quickly realized that Graham was wheelchair-bound, but thinking on his feet, Biden promptly instructed everyone else to stand up on Graham’s behalf, diffusing the gaffe with aplomb.
However, the president demonstrated no such quick thinking at Friday’s event, appearing stunned and speechless at the sudden and unexpected medical exigency. Biden stared off into space for several moments after the collapse before ultimately admonishing, “Folks, it’s ok.”
Watch:
Biden-Visibly-Stunned-As-LSU-Basketball-Players-Appears-To-Collapse
The video feed for the event then went silent for several minutes while the player was taken out in a wheelchair for medical attention. When the live video resumed, Biden briefly addressed the situation and continued with the event.
“This is not the first time this has happened. Not to her but to a lot of folks standing up on this stage,” Biden said.
The president, along with First Lady Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, is currently hosting the 2023 NCAA Men’s Championship team, the University of Connecticut Huskies, for a similar reception — hopefully without an equivalent interruption from any unforeseen medical situations demanding attention.
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