Inside Biden's swanky state dinner with Emmanuel Macron
President Biden on Thursday dined alongside guests of honor French President Emmanuel Macron and wife Brigitte Macron at his first state dinner since taking office, a glamorous affair featuring celebrity guests, prestige fashion, and "200 lobsters from Maine," Politico reports.
The red, white, and blue-themed event was somewhat of a return to form for the White House, which temporarily ixnayed such diplomatic grandeur in the light of the pandemic. It was held under a tent on the South Lawn, to which guests were driven in a heated trolley, and also feautured rented plateware since White House china can't leave the building. The Washington Post described the vibe as Beauty and the Beast meets Game of Thrones.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
For their part, U.S. politicians appeared to play nice. Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) briefly chummed it up with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), while House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy aptly declined to comment on a pending, GOP-led investigation of Hunter Biden considering the probe's intended target was in the room. "Well, I'm at dinner with my mom, so we're going to have a great time," McCarthy said.
When it came time for a toast, Biden raised his glass (apparently filled with ginger ale) and said, "Vive la France and God Bless America." Macron replied: "Long live the United States of America, long live France and long live the friendship between our two countries."
-
Will SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic make 2026 the year of mega tech listings?In Depth SpaceX float may come as soon as this year, and would be the largest IPO in history
-
Reforming the House of LordsThe Explainer Keir Starmer’s government regards reform of the House of Lords as ‘long overdue and essential’
-
Sudoku: February 2026Puzzles The daily medium sudoku puzzle from The Week
-
The ‘mad king’: has Trump finally lost it?Talking Point Rambling speeches, wind turbine obsession, and an ‘unhinged’ letter to Norway’s prime minister have caused concern whether the rest of his term is ‘sustainable’
-
A running list of everything Donald Trump’s administration, including the president, has said about his healthIn Depth Some in the White House have claimed Trump has near-superhuman abilities
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Does standing up to Trump help world leaders at home?Today’s Big Question Mark Carney’s approval ratings have ‘soared to new highs’ following his Davos speech but other world leaders may not benefit in the same way
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
