'Caption This': Photo of Senator Surrounded by Socially Distanced Reporters Goes Viral

Social media users have been having a bit of fun with a photo of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that highlights just how strange social distancing can be for many Americans, including lawmakers.

The viral image puts an unfamiliar twist on a very normal scene. Rather than a lawmaker being closely followed by reporters trying to ask questions, it shows McConnell, 78, surrounded in a loose circle — the reporters with their arms outstretched to record the interview despite their physical distance, which is recommended in order to slow the new coronavirus.

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“Caption this,” one reporter wrote, kicking off a wave of jokes.

“Mitch McConnell’s ‘social distancing’ press interview today looks like wizards surrounding a Death Eater,” another user tweeted, referencing Harry Potter.

Some critics of McConnell — who inspires fierce antipathy in many Democrats — used the pic as fodder to jab at him.

“This is how I’d approach Mitch McConnell, pandemic or not,” one user wrote.

“Lies can only travel six feet in the air,” another user quipped. “Keep your distance.”

McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, faced some backlash during President Donald Trump‘s impeachment trial when he told Fox News that he would be in “total coordination” with the White House.

He also drew the ire of many liberals for refusing to hold hearings on then-President Barack Obama‘s choice to fill a vacant Supreme Court seat.