(Headline USA) In his latest gaffe, President Joe Biden appeared to confuse Israel’s air strike on terrorist cells in Yemen with a looming labor union strike at U.S. ports.
The 81-year-old began to answer questions on Monday about Israel’s latest military strikes targeting the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, including whether he would support sending more U.S. troops to the Middle East and whether Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu had “gone too far.”
When asked for his comment “on the strikes in Yemen,” Biden replied, “I’ve spoken to both sides. They gotta settle the strike. I’m supporting the collective bargaining effort. I think they’ll settle the strike.”
It’s not clear whether Biden just misheard the question, but his answer appeared to be a reference to a looming strike by dockworkers along the East and Gulf coasts.
Tens of thousands of dockworkers represented by the International Longshoremen’s Association are set to walk off the job and begin striking on Tuesday unless the union and the U.S. Maritime Alliance can reach a contract agreement.
Conservative commentator Stephen Miller argued Biden’s confusion over the two issues was just the latest sign of his cognitive decline.
“Back in June, you were called a conspiracy theorist and a cheap fake artist for pointing things like this out,” he added.
Just so we're all clear on what's happening here – Jill Biden walks off without him, he is then asked about the Israeli IDF missile strikes in Yemen, and his reply is that he supports a union collective bargaining agreement and thinks that the strike will end soon. https://t.co/cy2itvNcKI
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) September 30, 2024
Republicans have blasted Biden for being physically and mentally absent as several U.S. states struggle in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. As the storm left thousands of Americans homeless, Biden remained at his beach house in Delaware over the weekend.
When asked why he wasn’t in the White House to lead the federal government’s response to the storm’s damage, Biden claimed he was recovering from a cold and that he was “leading” the response from Delaware.
“I was commanding it,” Biden said on Monday. “I was on the phone for at least two hours yesterday and the day before as well. I command it. It’s called a telephone.”
