Seeking to assuage concerns among Democrats that he’s mentally incapable of taking on Donald Trump this November, Joe Biden held a “big boy” press conference during Thursday’s NATO summit — and did it not disappoint.
Not content to just step on his own tongue more than once, the president spewed some of the most outrageous mistruths of his presidency (so far). From claiming Trump is his vice president to rewriting history on Afghanistan, the lies were almost nonstop.
1. Rising Prices
Biden claimed that “overall prices fell last month.”
That statement is false. According to PBS News, “Wholesale prices in the United States rose by a larger-than-expected 2.6 percent last month from a year earlier.”
2. ‘Vice President Trump’
Biden falsely claimed that he picked Donald Trump as his vice president.
“I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president [if I didn’t] think she was not qualified to be president,” the Delaware Democrat said.
Biden picked Kamala Harris, not Trump, to be his vice president.
3. Zelensky or Putin?
When confronted by a reporter on a moment from earlier in the day when he mistakenly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy as Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Biden claimed, “I said, ‘No, I’m sorry, Zelensky.’ And then I added five other names.”
Even anti-truth CNN admitted this did not occur.
4. Debate Performance
Biden blamed his travel schedule as the cause for his poor debate performance against Trump.
“The next debate, I’m not going to be traveling 15 time zones a week before. Anyway. That’s what it was about,” the president said.
Contrary to his claim, Biden did not travel through 15 time zones a week before the debate. The president returned from his overseas Europe trip on June 15 and spent the week before the debate prepping at Camp David.
5. Trump’s NATO Comments
Biden distorted comments about NATO Trump issued at a recent rally in Florida.
“I think he said at one of his rallies, don’t hold me to this, recently, where, ‘NATO — I just learned about NATO,’ or something to that effect. Foreign policy’s never been his strong point,” the president claimed.
That characterization is false. When describing his mindset prior to his first NATO summit in 2017, Trump said, “I didn’t want to be obnoxious because I felt, you know, it was the first time I’d ever done this. I went; I didn’t even know what the hell NATO was too much before, but it didn’t take me long to figure it out. Like about two minutes. And the first thing I figured out was they weren’t paying.”
6. Hamas’ Popularity
While discussing the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, Biden contended “[t]here is a growing dissatisfaction in, on the West Bank, from the Palestinians, about Hamas,” and that the terrorist group “is not popular now.”
Polling has shown that the majority of Palestinians support Hamas and approve of its Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
7. Endorsements
Biden claimed that the United Auto Workers Union “just endorsed me.”
That statement is misleading. The group endorsed Biden for president nearly six months ago on January 24.
8. U.S. Presence in Afghanistan
Biden whitewashed his prior support for the United States having a military presence in Afghanistan.
“You may recall, I still get criticized for it, but I was totally opposed to the occupation and trying to unite Afghanistan,” the president asserted. “Once we got bin Laden … we should’ve moved on, because it was not in our — no one’s ever going to unite that country.”
As noted by left-wing CNN, “In the early years of the war, Biden, then a U.S. senator for Delaware, was a vocal public supporter of the US having a sustained military presence in Afghanistan and engaging in extensive ‘nation-building’ there — and he explicitly rejected the idea of a narrow military mission targeting terrorists.”
9. Bad Poll Numbers
Biden claimed that “[t]here are at least five presidents running or incumbent presidents who had lower numbers than I have now later in the campaign.”
Even The Washington Post’s “fact-checkers” admitted this isn’t true.
“According to the presidential ratings tracked by FiveThirtyEight, Biden’s approval rating, 36.8 percent, at this point in his presidency is lower than any other presidents besides George H.W. Bush (36.7 percent) and Jimmy Carter (33.9 percent),” the Post reported. “Gerald Ford had an approval rating slightly higher. All three lost.”
10. Growing Economic Pains
Biden downplayed the notion that his policies are responsible for America’s ongoing economic pains.
“As you recall, understandably, many of you and many economists thought my initial initiatives that I put forward, ‘can’t do that, it’s going to cause inflation, things are going to skyrocket, debt’s going to go up,’” the president said.
Contrary to his insinuation, inflation skyrocketed after Biden took office and implemented far-left economic policies.
11. Illegal Border Crossings
Biden regurgitated the lie that “border encounters have gone down over 50 percent,” and the “current level is lower today than when Trump left office.”
That isn’t true, as illegal border crossings have exponentially risen to record highs under Biden’s presidency.
12. Trump’s Foreign Policy
The Democrat president contended that “[f]oreign policy has never been [Trump’s] strong point.”
That statement is inaccurate. During his presidency, Trump secured peace agreements between Israel and several of its Arab neighbors, re-established a working coalition among like-minded nations in the Indo-Pacific region to counter Chinese aggression, and decimated ISIS, among other achievements.
13. Classified Documents
While speaking about his prior interactions with Chinese dictator Xi Jinping, Biden suggested he turned over “all” of his notes to federal officials upon leaving office.
“I’ve spent more time with Xi Jinping than any world leader … and by the way, I handed in all my notes,” the president claimed.
Biden did not, in fact, turn over all classified materials in his possession upon leaving office. Federal officials discovered boxes of classified documents in Biden’s Delaware beach home, including records that dated back to his time in the U.S. Senate.
14. Child Gun Deaths
Biden claimed, “More children are killed by the bullet than any other cause of death.”
That assertion is misleading. Data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention contends the leading cause of death among minors is firearm-related incidents but considers 18- and 19-year-olds as “children” in its analyses. When using the actual classification of minors (individuals under the age of 17), the leading cause of death among children is motor vehicle-related incidents.
15. Trump’s Russia Comments
Biden claimed Trump told Vladimir Putin, “Do whatever the hell you want,” regarding Russia’s invasion of Eastern Europe. But that’s not accurate.
Trump’s remarks came during a South Carolina rally, during which he recounted a story from when he was president and speaking with a NATO member. Trump purportedly told this state that he would withhold U.S. support if they didn’t pay their minimum defense spending obligations.
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood
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