Joe Biden is once again at the center of the US presidential campaign. The Democratic president of the United States, replaced several weeks ago by Kamala Harris in the race for the White House, found herself this Tuesday, October 29, under criticism from Donald Trump and the Republicans. The reason? He appeared to describe the latter’s supporters as “trash,” which the White House denies.
For Joe Biden it was about responding to the racist joke made by Tony Hinchcliffe two days earlier during Donald Trump’s meeting at Madison Square Garden in New York. This comedian described Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage”, which provoked the indignation of several Puerto Rican stars and the response of Democrats.
During a video call with Latino activists, Joe Biden returned to this footage and said, “The only trash I see floating around here are his followers.”
“He doesn’t know what he’s saying.”
His comments were quickly picked up by Republicans. Present in Allentown, Pennsylvania, for a meeting with Donald Trump, Republican Senator Marco Rubio intervenes: he has “breaking news.” The elected official reports on Joe Biden’s statement, calling on the public to be witnesses, who respond with boos. Marco Rubio then asks the American president to apologize.
Donald Trump succeeds him and hits back at his yesterday’s enemy, once again attacking his age (81 years old, NLDR). “Please forgive him, he doesn’t know what he’s saying,” laughs the 78-year-old former head of state. In a statement, her spokesperson Karoline Leavitt demands a response from “Kamala (Harris)” in the face of “a shameful attack targeting tens of millions of Americans.”
Opposite, the presidency tries to end the controversy. Joe Biden would not have addressed Donald Trump’s supporters. “He described the hateful comments made during the rally at Madison Square Garden as ‘trash,'” White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said on X, with a transcript of the head of state in the ‘support’.
The latter defends himself shortly after on the same social network. Also making sure to attack “the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico uttered by Trump supporters,” he added: “Their demonization of Latinos is unacceptable. That’s all I wanted to say. The comments made during this rally do not reflect who we are.” . “we are as a nation.”
Trump distances himself from Hinchcliffe’s comments
Donald Trump, for his part, distanced himself from Tony Hinchcliffe’s comments, explaining on Fox News that he did not know who he was and declaring that the comedian should not have been on stage.
In Kamala Harris’ camp, the Democratic governor of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, reacted in these terms on CNN to Joe Biden’s comments: “I will never insult the good people of Pennsylvania or any other American, even if they decide to support a candidate that I do not support.”
The Democratic candidate was present this Tuesday in Washington to deliver her “accusation” against Donald Trump delivered in the same place where the former president had harangued his followers on January 6, 2021 before they attacked the Capitol.
He described his rival as “unstable, obsessed with revenge, consumed by resentment and in search of unlimited power,” while promising to embody a “future full of promise.”
Source: BFM TV
