US President Joe Biden raised eyebrows when he confused his vice president, Kamala Harris, with rival Donald Trump during a press conference on the sidelines of a crucial NATO meeting on July 11. The US president also introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as Russian President Vladimir Putin in his speech.
The back-to-back gaffes created instant online ridicule for Biden and raised new questions about his age and clarity, threatening to derail his presidential campaign.
Biden blundered while standing alongside NATO leaders during a signing ceremony with Zelensky on the final day of the NATO summit in Washington. Concluding his opening remarks, Biden introduced Zelensky as follows: “Ladies and gentlemen, President Putin!”
The comment immediately caught the attention of those gathered, with some world leaders expressing shock.
Realizing his mistake, Biden came clean and said, “President Putin! We are going to defeat President Putin. President Zelensky. I am very focused on defeating Putin. We have to worry about that.”
President Biden also mistakenly referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump” in the opening question of his highly anticipated solo press conference in Washington.
“Look, I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump as vice president (if) I thought she wasn’t qualified to be president,” Biden said, confusing his second-in-command with his opponent in the November election, former President Donald Trump.
As the gaffes sparked criticism from the opposition party and others, Joe Biden responded to growing calls for him to step aside. In a social media post, Joe Biden wrote: “By the way: Yes, I know the difference. One is a prosecutor and the other is a criminal.”
Biden’s challenger Donald Trump immediately took note of the gaffes and mocked his rival in a social media post.
“Crooked Joe begins his ‘Big Boy’ press conference by saying, ‘I would not have picked Vice President Trump to be Vice President… Great job, Joe!’” Trump said on his Truth Social site.
Netizens were quick to react to Biden’s gaffes. One user wrote: “The president refused to resign as he slurred his words during the press conference, however, he exceeded expectations. Biden truly feels that he has done a phenomenal job as president, which means forcing him to resign will be difficult.”
Another user added: “And then immediately corrected himself. I understand that’s not what’s making headlines.” A third commented: “It seems like everyone is against Biden right now, why is this breaking news? I guess it’s about time Biden resigned as it seems the odds are against him regarding the upcoming US election.”
Another user wrote: “You couldn’t make this up if you wanted to. Right before his ‘big guy’ press conference.” A seventh user wrote: “I’m cracking up.”
Biden sought to downplay the significance of his verbal gaffes, pointing to praise from world leaders who deemed the NATO conference a success.
Republicans were quick to seize on the gaffes, sharing videos of the blunders on social media.
The White House recently released a letter from the President’s personal physician, Kevin O’Connor, following a lackluster performance in the June debate that came in response to allegations that he suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
Recently, New York neurologist Tom Pitts, who specializes in treating Parkinson’s disease, said that Joe Biden exhibits “classic features of neurodegeneration.” Pitts assessed the president based on his public appearances.
(With contributions from agencies)
