It’s hard to imagine President Joe Biden getting a greeting like this at an auto racing event.
Crowd chants “USA!” as President @realDonaldTrump arrives outside the McLaren Garage on Pit Lane ???????? pic.twitter.com/JzioZeUNPJ
— Margo Martin (@margommartin) May 5, 2024
That’s not just my opinion; it’s also apparently the opinion of Biden’s handlers. If they thought Biden would receive the warm welcome former President Donald Trump got at the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday, trust me: They’ve have him showing up for photo ops like this one.
More scenes from Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix!! pic.twitter.com/4SNlHRVpZV
— Margo Martin (@margommartin) May 5, 2024
Epic day at Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix!!! ????️ pic.twitter.com/Zkw8Am2iFW
— Margo Martin (@margommartin) May 6, 2024
Biden’s team probably remembers that it was at a similar event — the Sparks 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway — that the phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” was first coined in 2021.
I’m guessing they’d probably prefer to avoid a similar episode, especially in the 81-year-old president’s actual presence.
Granted, those posts were from the X account of Margo Martin, a former Trump White House press assistant and current deputy director of communications for his current campaign organization, so she can hardly be considered an impartial observer.
However, Metrópoles, a Brazilian online newspaper published in Portuguese, shared similar footage of the event on its X feed.
Donald Trump faz visita ao GP de Miami e é aplaudido pelo público.
Candidato republicano à presidência dos EUA foi recepcionado por Zak Brown, Chefe de Equipe.
(????: @SamPancher) pic.twitter.com/EYqOZGBFZC
— Metrópoles (@Metropoles) May 5, 2024
Trump was greeted by McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown before the race and given what the Independent called a “guided tour” of the car that would be driven by Lando Norris to victory a short time later.
In true Trumpian fashion, the former president told Norris, who had competed in 109 Formula One races without a first-place finish until Sunday, that Norris had won because Trump was there.
“I didn’t see [Trump] in the garage ahead of the race because I was busy preparing, but he came and saw me after to congratulate me,” Norris told the Independent. “He said he was my lucky charm because it was my first win so I don’t know if he’s going to come to more races now.
“Donald is someone you have to have respect for in many ways, and I guess it was an honour for him to come up to me and to take the time out of his life to acknowledge what I’ve done,” the driver added, calling it “a cool moment.”
There’s no telling how Norris might have remembered such a visit by Biden, of course (just as there’s no telling whether Biden would remember it at all). But it’s a question that will probably go forever without an answer, as Biden showing up at a race like this is about as likely as his giving a speech that doesn’t need to be corrected later.
I mean, it could happen. But it’s not the way the smart money’s betting.