The president later issued a statement retracting his comments.
President Joe Biden is facing backlash for referring to supporters of former President Trump as “garbage” during a virtual speech on Oct. 29. Biden made these remarks during a Zoom call with Voto Latino, a nonprofit organization focused on registering Latino voters, where he mentioned stand-up comedian Tony Hinchcliffe’s comments about Puerto Rico at Trump’s rally in New York City.
Biden stated, “Just the other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage.” He went on to say, “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unacceptable, un-American, and goes against everything we stand for.”
Following the criticism, the White House and Biden sought to clarify his comments. White House spokesman Andrew Bates shared the transcript of the remarks, emphasizing that the president was referring to the hateful rhetoric at the rally as “garbage.”
In a post on X, Biden explained that his comment was directed at Trump’s negative portrayal of Latinos and was not meant to insult Americans. He stated, “That’s all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don’t represent who we are as a nation.”
The original remarks drew a swift rebuke from the Trump campaign, with spokesperson Karoline Leavitt stating that Biden and Harris disdain millions of Americans who support Trump. Sen. JD Vance criticized Biden’s comment as “disgusting,” while Gov. Josh Shapiro emphasized the importance of respecting all Americans, regardless of their political affiliations.
Elon Musk, a prominent supporter of the Trump campaign, criticized Biden’s statement on his platform X, labeling it as divisive. Trump also drew a comparison between Biden’s remarks and Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” comment from 2016.
The controversy stemmed from Hinchcliffe’s joke at the Trump rally, where he referred to Puerto Rico as an “island of garbage.” Both Democrats and some Republicans denounced the comedian’s comments, leading the Trump campaign to distance itself from the joke.
Overall, the incident sparked debate and highlighted the ongoing political divide in the country. Please rephrase
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