Getting downgraded from first class is never fun. However, I’d say this is probably one of the more legitimate reasons for doing so…
Joe Biden flies American first class from MSP to PHL
A Twitter/X user took to social media on June 28, 2025, to complain about being downgraded from first class on American flight AA2717, from Minneapolis (MSP) to Philadelphia (PHL).
The woman posted about how she’d “like to know who the government official is who bumped me out of my first class seat,” commenting “our tax dollars hard at work y’all,” with an angry emoji.
After the 2hr31min flight, she posted an update, realizing that the person who bumped her (or it seems, her husband) out of first class was Joe Biden. She commented about how “American Airlines is woke AF but Joe Biden signed my daughter’s birthday card so I guess it’s okay he bumped my husband out of first class.”
I’ve gotta say, the change in her perspective is quite interesting. Her Twitter/X account is super conservative, with a profile picture even showing books about math and science no longer being reachable, and instead being replaced by books about being gay.
Yet it doesn’t sound like she was actually being sarcastic about asking Biden to sign her daughter’s birthday card. She even took a picture with him while smiling, posted a picture of Biden posing with the crew, and shared a picture of him reading “How the Irish Saved Civilization,” by Thomas Cahill.
This is quite a change in attitude, because as recently as earlier this month, she posted on social media about how Biden is “trash.” Hey, it’s nice when people seemingly have positive interactions, and this kind of dialogue is a nice change of pace. Often meeting someone humanizes them. We have a lot more in common than we have differences.
This seems like a reasonable reason for a downgrade
Biden was in Minnesota to attend the funeral of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman, who was tragically assassinated by a man posing as a police officer. Her husband was also killed.
With that in mind, obviously former presidents have security details, and I think just about any airline would accommodate them, as that seems entirely reasonable. I don’t think there’s anything “woke” here, and that the same thing would’ve happened regardless of the political party of the former president. Often there are security rules regarding where they can sit, etc.
This flight was operated by an Airbus A319, which is also American’s jet with the fewest first class seats, as there are only eight first class seats.
Upon arrival in Philadelphia, Biden was escorted down the stairs of the jet bridge, and into a waiting SUV. There were quite a few people crowded around the gate watching, so I imagine someone must have tipped people off to him being onboard.
Bottom line
Joe Biden flew American first class yesterday from Minneapolis to Philadelphia, after attending a funeral. Someone had to be downgraded from first class to accommodate a “government official,” and was initially angry. However, when she found out who it was, she changed her tune a bit, even though she definitely wasn’t a Biden fan. She still asked him for a picture and an autograph, and concluded that “I guess it’s okay.”
Given how divisive of a time it is, it’s actually nice to see an interaction like this…
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