BIDEN faces backlash after calling TRUMP supporters ‘garbage’

Wednesday, October 30, 2024 - U.S. President Joe Biden is facing criticism after he appeared to refer to supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as "garbage" during a campaign call Tuesday. The remarks came as Biden spoke on a video call with VotoLatino, addressing comments made by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who, while opening for Trump at a New York rally, described Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.”

Biden said, “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 comment was aimed at Trump’s rhetoric, not his supporters, with spokesperson Andrew Bates explaining Biden had called out the "hateful rhetoric at the Madison Square Garden rally" as “garbage.”

Trump’s campaign quickly reacted, with the former president denouncing Biden’s words as “terrible” at a rally in Pennsylvania. Trump compared Biden’s comments to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 description of Trump supporters as “deplorables,” adding, “Garbage, I think, is worse, right?”

Trump’s running mate, J.D. Vance, also criticized the president’s remarks as “disgusting” and accused Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris of "attacking half of the country."

The incident has amplified campaign tensions as Biden and Harris face a tight race against Trump, with Election Day just one week away.