Posted by The White House on Friday, May 14, 2021 White House press secretary Jen Psaki defended the Biden administration’s early optimistic appraisal of the fight against the coronavirus throughout the summer, including a 4th of July event declaring “independence from this virus.” “When he made those comments back in May we were dealing with a very different strain of the virus than we are today,” she said. Psaki said that President Biden would wear masks according to the CDC guidance, including in areas where he would travel. “We will of course be abiding by every aspect of the CDC guidelines on masking that they will provide this afternoon,” she said.