In an address to the nation on April 8, President Joe Biden made a public service announcement about viewing the solar eclipse safely.
He indirectly referenced a past incident involving former President Donald Trump. Biden’s message, delivered through a video on the social media platform X, emphasizing the importance of using protective eyewear during the eclipse, echoing the advice of eye care professionals.
“An eclipse is worth marveling at. But don’t be silly, folks – play it safe and wear protective eyewear,” Biden remarked while donning a pair of eclipse glasses, standing on the same White House balcony where Trump was seen observing a partial solar eclipse in 2017 without any protective eyewear, a moment that had previously drawn significant attention and criticism.
It was August 21, 2017, when then-President Trump, together with First Lady Melania and his son Barron, accompanied by various cabinet members and White House staff, stepped out of the presidential residence to observe the remarkable astronomical event. Disregarding the unanimous guidance from specialists to avoid gazing at the sun under any circumstances, even when it’s partially obscured, the former president gazed directly upwards.
Per the White House pool report, the president first motioned towards a group of administrative employees assembled beneath the balcony, gesturing upwards. At that point, a White House assistant in close proximity exclaimed, “Don’t look!”
This incident was swiftly ridiculed across various social media platforms, and now, seven years later, with countless Americans from Texas to Maine in the path of the solar eclipse, the ex-president was humorously cited as a cautionary tale of the importance of wearing proper eye protection.
Eye health specialists have long warned that even brief exposure to the sun during an eclipse without appropriate protection can lead to lasting vision damage. They advocate for the use of special eclipse glasses, which provide significantly more protection than standard sunglasses, to safely view these astronomical events.
The White House supplemented Biden’s video with a written reminder of the marvel that an eclipse represents, reinforcing the call for safety.
The message appeared to serve a dual purpose: to promote eye safety during eclipses and to subtly critique Trump’s previous disregard for safety guidelines.
Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate defeated by Trump in the 2016 presidential election, also seized the moment to jest at Trump’s expense, sharing a reminder on X accompanied by the infamous photo of Trump squinting at the sun. “Please do not take medical advice from a man who looked directly at a solar eclipse,” she said.
The eclipse’s path of totality, where the moon completely obscured the sun, stretched from Texas through western New York. Biden was scheduled to be in Madison, Wisconsin, and Chicago, Illinois, on April 8 —locations west of the totality zone.