Fox News' Brian Kilmeade Squabbles with 6th Grader Over Biden and School Closures: 'Really?'

Roy Rochlin/Getty Images Brian Kilmeade

Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade went viral in an unexpected way Wednesday for his response to a sixth-grader who complimented President Joe Biden.

During a segment about how some schools are still operating virtually amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Kilmeade brought on a panel of three children to ask what it has been like learning online.

Mason Seder, from Philadelphia, told Kilmeade that he thinks Biden is "handling things in a very good way and we would not have gone to this if it were still the last president."

"Really?" Kilmeade, 56, shot back. "That's hard to believe, because the last president was saying 'I want every kid back in school.' "

Former President Donald Trump had pushed for schools and businesses to remain open last year, despite federal health officials' fears about spreading the virus.

How to safely — and how quickly to — reopen schools remains one of the hot-button issues of emerging from the pandemic.

Trump, 74, made it a signature issue before he left office, threatening to withhold funding for schools that didn't reopen while critics accused him of having "no plan" on how to do so amid health concerns.

Biden Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said last week that the administration is pushing for schools to reopen this spring, as more vaccines roll out, according to CNN.

Biden, 78, said schools "should probably all be open" by the fall.

Steven Ferdman/Getty Images Brian Kilmeade

Many students have faced challenges learning remotely during the pandemic, but Seder told Kilmeade he's been learning "some things" and that he thinks his teachers "are doing a great job" with the unprecedented conditions.

"It's not what it could be if we were in person," Seder said.

Kilmeade told the boy and the panel's two other guests — an eighth-grader and a high school freshman — they "should be back in school right now" and the students should "blame your politicians and unions."

The host introduced the segment by saying students are "stuck learning on Zoom" and "begging to get back in the classroom."

He then criticized Biden, who spoke with students at a Virginia school on Tuesday, claiming Biden was "getting an earful" from the kids.

The Fox News host's back-and-forth with Seder subsequently went viral on social media and drew some backlash from those who said Kilmeade was being too harsh on a child.

"Brian Kilmeade can't let a positive thing said about Biden—from a 6th grader—go unchallenged," tweeted a former aide to Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro. "Unbelievable."