U.S. President Joe Biden is encountering criticism after he seemingly referred to supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as “garbage” during a campaign call on Tuesday.
The comments were made while Biden was on a video call with VotoLatino, addressing remarks from comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who described Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage” while opening for Trump at a rally in New York.
Biden stated, “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters,” while condemning Trump’s “demonization of Latinos” as “unconscionable and un-American.”
The White House later clarified that Biden’s remark was directed at Trump’s rhetoric rather than his supporters, with spokesperson Andrew Bates explaining that Biden was calling out the “hateful rhetoric at the Madison Square Garden rally” as “garbage.”
Trump’s campaign quickly responded, with the former president labeling Biden’s remarks as “terrible” during a rally in Pennsylvania. Trump likened Biden’s comments to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 characterization of Trump supporters as “deplorables,” asserting, “Garbage, I think, is worse, right?”
Trump’s running mate, J.D. Vance, also condemned the president’s remarks as “disgusting,” accusing Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris of “attacking half of the country.”
This incident has heightened campaign tensions as Biden and Harris face a closely contested race against Trump, with Election Day just a week away.
