‘It Got Me’: Late-Night Hosts Swat At Biden, Buzzed By Cicada

WASHINGTON, DC — The fly that set up camp on Mike Pence’s head during the 2020 vice presidential debate had some competition Wednesday from one of the billions of 17-year cicadas currently populating parts of the United States.

As President Joe Biden waited to board Air Force One for his first overseas trip as the commander in chief, swarms of insects whizzed back and forth across the tarmac. As television crews filmed Biden, they captured the fateful moment he reached up and swatted at his neck.

Cicadas were on the attack.

The Washington, D.C., area is just one of many spots across the country that’s been swarmed by Brood X periodical cicadas, a large emergence of the loud 17-year insects that are unknowingly dive-bombing moving vehicles and unsuspecting passersby.

Right now, there are trillions of them in the Washington, Maryland and Virginia region, University of Maryland entomologist Paula Shrewsbury told The Associated Press.

But unlike Pence, who didn’t notice — or, perhaps, acknowledge — the fly on his head, Biden certainly took notice of the conspicuous insect. He also took the “attack” in stride.

“Watch out for those cicadas,” he told reporters. “It got me.”

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The cicadas got the White House press corps, too, when they decided to attack the engines of a plane chartered to transport them to England. The plane was scheduled to leave Dulles International Airport at 9 p.m. Tuesday, but a new one had to be found in order for the group to travel.

It was an imperfect cicada storm.

Meanwhile, the internet buzzed with reaction and commentary surrounding Biden’s chance encounter with the bug. Many had fun with it, and late-night TV hosts were no exception.

“Tomorrow that cicada will be on Fox News in a neck brace calling for Biden to be impeached,” Jimmy Fallon joked.

Fallon, who hosts “The Tonight Show,” also couldn’t brush off the joyful irony of the moment.

“Meanwhile, Mike Pence was like, 'Bugs on your head? You're supposed to save that for the big debate,’” he said.

Jimmy Kimmel offered some justifiable sympathy to the cicadas. They’re not here to bug us — they’re simply here on a frenzied mission to mate and ensure the survival of their species.

No pressure.

"These poor cicadas. They come out once every 17 years, they're like, 'Hey guys!' And we're like, 'Gross! Get away from us.' And then they're like, 'But we just want to go check out the engine of this plane,'" Kimmel said.

“These poor cicadas,” he repeated. “They’re so out of touch.”

Meanwhile, “The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah may not be a cicada fan. He didn’t hold back, saying what some of us — especially those living on the East Coast — are probably thinking when it comes to cicadas.

"For people living in areas where these cicadas have taken over, they're basically ruining your life," he quipped. "I mean, you walk out your front door, they're all over your lawn. You drive to work, they're running your car off the road. You stumble home, they're in bed with your spouse."

Finally, Stephen Colbert — whom we can all rely on to deliver a quality dad joke or two during his opening monologue — didn’t disappoint.

"Whoa! Forget the Secret Service because that man needs a SWAT team," Colbert said.