The most awkward political moments, with photos
Uncomfortable handshakes. Exit blunders. Troublesome toasts. Awkward moments happen to everybody, including those in the political spotlight. In honor of Awkward Moments Day, POLITICO takes a look at some of those captured occasions.
President Joe Biden gets cozy with customers at Cruisers Diner in Seaman, Ohio, on Sept. 9, 2012. He spoke with voters at the diner and pulled up a chair for a motorcycle rider at the restaurant. Biden placed his hands on her shoulders as other riders watched the scene unfold.
President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin share an awkward toast at a luncheon on Sept. 28, 2015, in New York City, during the 70th annual U.N. General Assembly.
Bill and Hillary Clinton express pure joy at the end of the Democratic National Convention on July 28, 2016. There’s nothing wrong with having childlike wonder over a balloon drop; it can be awkward though, when it happens in front of thousands of people. The various photos were a web sensation and a memorable moment from the convention.
President George H.W. Bush attends the National Grocers Association trade exhibition in Orlando, Florida, on Feb. 4, 1992, in this photo op gone wrong. The New York Times used this shot on its front page, accompanied by an article with the headline “Bush Encounters the Supermarket, Amazed.” Although the reporter of the Times’ story didn’t attend the event, the article states that Bush struggled with relating to the middle class, and this reputation haunted Bush.
Melania Trump greets Michelle Obama with a gift from Tiffany & Co. upon arriving at the White House on Jan. 20, 2017, prior to inauguration proceedings. The group was supposed to take a formal photo that captured the shift in power, but the outgoing first lady was left standing with the box. After moments of fumbling, President Barack Obama placed the box inside the White House. Over a year later, Michelle Obama revealed the contents of the Tiffany box: a picture frame.
President Barack Obama shares an uncomfortable moment with Cuban President Raul Castro at a joint news conference at the Revolution Palace in Havana on March 21, 2016. Castro raised Obama’s arm unexpectedly, leaving the president to smile off the situation.
President-elect Donald Trump dines with Mitt Romney at Jean Georges restaurant in New York City on Nov. 29, 2016. While Trump enjoys the extra media attention, observers noted that Romney was uncomfortable around the cameras, as this viral photo depicted. Trump was, at the time, considering Romney for a role in his administration.
President George W. Bush holds a crying baby on July 13, 2006, while meeting with German residents on a trip to Trinwillershagen, Germany. Babies and politicians have been a popular photo op for centuries. The first documented instance of a baby being kissed by a politician dates back to Andrew Jackson, though the president asked Secretary of War John Eaton to actually kiss the infant.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel chows down on a pickled herring during a name-giving ceremony of a fish trawler in Sassnitz, eastern Germany, on May 26, 2015. The photo went viral.
House Speaker John Boehner smooches House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi as he is handed the speaker's gavel for the first session of the 114th Congress in the House Chambers on Jan. 6, 2015, in Washington, D.C.
China's Vice Premier Wang Qishan (right) and U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner attempt to shake hands despite Secretary of State Hillary Clinton being stuck between the two political figures. The awkward handshake took place before the opening ceremony of the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue on May 24, 2010, in Beijing, China.
Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain exits the wrong way after a presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, on Oct. 15, 2008. His reaction was one of the most memorable moments from the debate, the last one of the campaign.
Secretary of State John Kerry hugs French President François Hollande before a meeting at the Elysee Palace on January 16, 2015, in Paris. The embrace was memorable for observers, as Kerry kept the hug going for some time.
Former President Donald Trump struggles with the “ASEAN-way handshake.” He attempts the handshake with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (left) and Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte during an opening ceremony at the ASEAN Summit at the Cultural Center of the Philippines on Nov. 13, 2017, in Manila, Philippines.
