House Republicans announced on Wednesday an investigation into how the White House handled President Joe Biden calling former President Donald Trump‘s supporters “garbage” during remarks to a Latino voting group in response to a comedian’s joke about Puerto Rico being an “island of garbage” at Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally over the weekend.
In a letter to White House Counsel Edward Siskel, House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY) said the White House may have violated federal law by releasing a “false transcript” of Biden’s remarks while seeking to boost the campaign of Trump’s 2024 rival in the White House race, Vice President Kamala Harris.
🚨BREAKING: Biden-Harris White House may have violated the law by altering President Biden’s “garbage” remarks in official transcript.
House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (@RepStefanik) and Oversight Chairman James Comer (@RepJamesComer) are raising concerns… pic.twitter.com/52z6J7EO7q
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) October 30, 2024
“Americans were rightfully insulted when President Biden, seeking to boost Ms. Harris’s presidential campaign, referred to an enormous swath of the country as ‘floating … garbage.’ President Biden’s vindictive words were unsurprising, given his previous statements regarding people who choose not to vote for his preferred candidate. Unsurprising too were the White House’s actions after he said them. Instead of apologizing or clarifying President Biden’s words, the White House instead sought to change them (despite them being recorded on video) by releasing a false transcript of his remarks. The move is not only craven, but it also appears to be in violation of federal law, including the Presidential Records Act of 1978,” they wrote.
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“White House staff cannot rewrite the words of the President of the United States to be more politically on message,” Stefanik and Comer added. “Though President Biden’s relevance continues to diminish, his words continue to matter, even as they become increasingly divisive and erratic. We write to demand the White House retain and preserve all documents and internal communications regarding President Biden’s statement and the release of the inaccurate transcript. We also demand that the White House issue a corrected transcript with the accurate words.”
As The Daily Wire reported, Biden said on Tuesday: “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American. It’s totally contrary to everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been.” There is video footage of his remarks.
WATCH: President Joe Biden: “The only garbage I see floating out there is [Trump] supporters.” pic.twitter.com/9teSUOytqC
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) October 30, 2024
However, the White House released a transcript that contained a different quote: “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporter’s — his — his demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American. It’s totally contrary to everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been.”
Journalist Michael Shellenberger responded to the White House transcript, posting on X: “The Presidential Records Act prohibits altering official transcripts, which is what the White House did. And the alteration makes no sense. The White House is now claiming Biden was referring to the racism of Trump’s supporters, but the transcript refers to ‘his supporter’s.’”
Biden claimed in a post to X: “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 demonization 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.” And Harris told reporters that she thought Biden “clarified his comments” and the VP said she “strongly” disagreed “with any criticism” of people based on their vote.
Trump responded by jumping into a garbage truck in the battleground state of Wisconsin and telling reporters that Biden’s comment was a “disgrace.”
