Former CNN political commentator Chris Cillizza said that President Joe Biden’s comments branding supporters of Donald Trump “garbage” is an “absolute nightmare” for the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris.
“Biden’s verbal gaffe (if that’s what it was) is an absolute nightmare for Harris campaign. This is getting more attention than Harris’ closing argument speech,” Cillizza wrote on X.
The longtime Washington establishment media insider was referencing incendiary comments made by Biden on Tuesday, in which the outgoing president remarked: “The only garbage I see floating out there is his [Trump’s] supporters.”
The comment from Biden came in response to a joke made by comedian and host of the popular Kill Tony podcast Tony Hinchcliffe, who compared the island of Puerto Rico to the Pacific Gyre garbage patch during a stand-up routine at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday, calling the American territory a “floating island of garbage.”
Biden’s remarks have been likened to Hillary Clinton’s infamous “basket of deplorables” line in 2016 and have sparked heavy backlash. Even Democrat Governor of Pennsylvania Josh Shapiro quickly distanced himself from Biden, saying that he disagreed with “attacking supporters of either candidate.”
The White House quickly attempted to spin the comments from the 81-year-old president, who later claimed that he was merely referring to Hinchcliffe rather than Trump supporters in general.
However, this explanation has drawn scepticism, including from Cillizza, who said: “Also the attempt to transcribe this by the White House as “supporter’s” as opposed to “supporters” — which he clearly says — is laughable.”
On Tuesday evening, CNN host Kaitlan Collins noted that it was “hard” to believe the White House’s spin on Biden’s comments “when you can listen to it for yourself.”
