US President Joe Biden, who faced criticism over calling former president Donald Trump’s supporters “garbage”, has attempted to clarify his comments.
“The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters,” remarked Biden in response to the comedian Tony Hinchcliffe’s joke of referring to Puerto Rico, a US territory as an “island of garbage”.
Biden’s offensive comments sparked a severe reaction from the Republican supporters.
Taking to X, President Biden said: “Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump’s supporter at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage, which is the only word I can think of to describe it.”
“His deamonisation of Latinos is unconscionable. That’s all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don’t reflect who we are as a nation,” he further wrote.
The White House also issued a transcript, clarifying that Biden’s comments were directed towards Hinchcliffe’s words and not all Trump followers.
“The only garbage I see floating out there is (Trump’s) supporter’s his demonisation of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American,” mentioned the official transcript.
Andrew Bates, a White House spokesperson, also clarified that the president was referring to the “hateful rhetoric coming out of the Madison Square Garden rally” only, reported Newsweek.
However, the Republicans are drawing parallels of Biden’s remarks with Hillary Clinton’s controversial comments when she said that half of the Trump’s supporters belong to a “basket of deplorables” in 2016.
In response to Biden’s disrespectful comments toward his supporters, Trump made a statement on X.
“Kamala Harris is running a campaign of hate. She has spent all week comparing her political opponents to the most evil mass murderers in history. Now, on top of everything, Joe Biden calls our supporters ‘garbage’. You can’t lead America if you don’t love the American People,” said Trump.