President Joe Biden Awkwardly Grabs Reporter's Hand & Squeezes Under Umbrella When Asked About Decision To End Covid-19 Emergency

President Joe Biden awkwardly grabbed a reporter’s hand this week and squeezed under her umbrella after being asked about his recent decision to end two Covid-19 national emergencies, RadarOnline.com has learned.

The somewhat bizarre incident took place on Tuesday afternoon as the 80-year-old president was departing the White House to visit New York City.

While leaving the White House and approaching his helicopter, NBC News Chief White House Correspondent Kristen Welker questioned Biden about his Monday night decision to draw down two Covid-19 national emergencies by May 11.

“What's behind your decision to end the Covid emergency?” she asked.

But before answering Welker’s question, President Biden grabbed her by the hand and squeezed underneath her umbrella.

“The Covid emergency ends when the Supreme Court ends it,” he responded, according to Daily Mail.

As RadarOnline.com previously reported, two of President Biden’s policies enacted under the ongoing Covid emergencies are currently in limbo as he awaits rulings by the Supreme Court.

One of those policies, Title 42, allows border officials to turn migrants away due to the pandemic.

The second policy, Biden’s massive student loan forgiveness plan, is also in limbo as he awaits a ruling by SCOTUS.

House and Senate Republicans have also called for the ongoing Covid-19 emergencies to be ended immediately, although Biden has pushed for the emergencies to be slowly drawn down in the coming months so plans can proactively be put in place before May 11.

Shortly after leaving the White House on Tuesday, Biden flew to New York City to tout a new $292 million mega grant that will be used to construct a new rail tunnel underneath the Hudson River to connect New York and New Jersey.

The project is part of $1.2 billion in mega grants awarded following Biden’s 2021 infrastructure law, although House Republicans have criticized the president for “wasteful Washington spending” connected to the newly launched infrastructure initiative.

“I don't think there's anyone in America who doesn't agree that there's some wasteful Washington spending that we can eliminate,” said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer celebrated the Hudson Tunnel Project and the 72,000 jobs the project is estimated to create.

“Get on the Joe Biden Express now because we are not stopping,” Schumer said on Tuesday. “For four years, the former president was shoveling you know what and now we're going to put real shovels in the ground, wielded by real American workers.”