In case you thought the cicada problem in Washington D.C. was being exaggerated, President Joe Biden took one of the flying insects to the neck on Wednesday morning. Emerging every 17 years, the Brood X cicadas have been particularly concentrated in the nation’s capital, and one of them finally got a taste of that sweet presidential blood, which caused Biden to warn reporters to watch out. Via Politico:
Chatting with a uniformed military officer before boarding Air Force One, en route to a Royal Air Force station in England, the president could be seen swatting a sizable insect from his neck. Biden’s gesture interrupted his conversation with the service member as both men diverted their gazes to the ground, where the bug had apparently landed.
You can see Biden taking a cicada to the neck below:
President Biden gets the cicada treatment on the way to Europe pic.twitter.com/ywthb2hIJy
— The Recount (@therecount) June 9, 2021
Before making a move for Biden, the cicadas had already been causing problems for the White House. According to the AP, cicadas got aboard Air Force Two after hiding themselves in the shirt folds of one of Vice President Kamala Harris’ secret service agents. Not content with that excursion, another swarm of cicadas managed to ground an entire plane on Tuesday. That aircraft was carrying the press corps that was supposed to land in London ahead of Biden. Instead, the reporters were forced to switch planes after a number of the insects were discovered near the plane’s mechanics. They’re freaking annoying is the main gist here.
(Via Politico, Associated Press)