Biden Donned Trump Hat in Shanksville as Show of 9/11 Unity, White House Says

President Joe Biden briefly donned a red “Trump 2024” hat during a visit to a Shanksville, Pennsylvania fire station, in what the White House described as a gesture of unity on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
“At the Shanksville Fire Station, @POTUS spoke about the country’s bipartisan unity after 9/11 and said we needed to get back to that,” White House senior deputy press secretary Andrew Bates posted on social media.
Bates said Biden gave a hat to a Trump supporter in the crowd as a friendly gesture. The supporter then asked Biden to put on a Trump cap in the name of bipartisanship, and the president went along, briefly wearing the red hat.
“As a gesture, he gave a hat to a Trump supporter, who then suggested that, in the same spirit, POTUS should wear the Trump cap. He briefly put it on,” Bates added.
Biden, who was in Shanksville, the rural area where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into a field 23 years ago, wore the hat during a private meeting with community members and then took a picture with a group of children. The photo of the moment quickly went viral, particularly among Republicans.
“What’s Happening?” senior Trump campaign adviser Chris LaCivita posted along with a photo of Biden in the hat.
“Kamala did so badly in last night’s debate, Joe Biden just put on a Trump hat,” posted the TrumpWarRoom X account, the rapid response team for Trump’s campaign.
But this isn’t the first time Biden has been seen in such close proximity to MAGA gear. Two years ago, also in Shanksville, he was photographed standing next to two young girls sporting Trump hats.
One had a blue hat with the “Make America Great Again” slogan, while the other wore a red hat featuring “Trump” in bold white letters.
A third child standing to Biden’s left added to the scene, wearing a red shirt with Trump’s face and the words “I’ll be back,” along with the former president’s recognizable signature.
While Biden has occasionally been caught surrounded by MAGA merchandise, former President Donald Trump has never been seen posing with supporters wearing Biden—or Kamala Harris—gear. As the campaign heats up, the odds of Trump being caught in a photo with Harris merchandise seem about as likely as him endorsing her for president.
Earlier in the day, Biden, Harris and Trump were in Lower Manhattan for a solemn commemoration at the site of the 9/11 attacks. They stood just feet apart, joined by former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and GOP vice-presidential nominee JD Vance. Bloomberg coaxed a handshake between Trump and Harris, their second in two days and another show of civility amid an otherwise caustic campaign season.
After the ceremony in New York, Biden and Harris traveled to Shanksville and later to Arlington, Virginia, where American Airlines Flight 77 hit the Pentagon.
Last year, Biden marked the 9/11 anniversary at a military base in Alaska while returning from a trip to Asia, as Harris attended the New York ceremony.
In 2022, Biden visited the memorials in New York, Shanksville, and the Pentagon by himself.