‘What happened to George Floyd—now you got how many people around the country, millions of cell phones. It’s changed the way everybody’s looking at this…’
(Claire Russel, Liberty Headlines) Presidential candidate Joe Biden said on Thursday that the assassination of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. wasn’t as impactful as George Floyd’s death.
At an economic reopening roundtable in Philadelphia, Biden said that Floyd’s death has inspired a cultural shift thanks to social media and the use of smartphones.
“Even Dr. King’s assassination did not have the worldwide impact that George Floyd’s death did,” Biden said.
“What happened to George Floyd—now you got how many people around the country, millions of cell phones,” he continued. “It’s changed the way everybody’s looking at this. Look at the millions of people marching around the world.”
Joe Biden: “Even Dr. King’s assassination did not have the worldwide impact the George Floyd’s death did.” ? pic.twitter.com/b9LzB9bbNq
— ForAmerica ?? (@ForAmerica) June 11, 2020
Biden has faced a good deal of criticism over the past few weeks for his past remarks and policies on race. Last month, he said that black Americans who were on the fence about whether to vote for him or President Donald Trump “ain’t black.”
And last summer, Biden implied that race was synonymous with poverty while discussing the achievement gap and funding in education.
“We have this notion that somehow if you’re poor, you cannot do it,” Biden said in August. “Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.”
While always gaffe-prone, Biden’s recent propensity for foot-in-mouth remarks has alarmed many in his party.
Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a former Democratic National Committee chair and longtime Clinton fundraiser—said at a recent breakfast that it was wise for Biden’s handlers to keep him relegated to his Delaware basement since he lacked the means to make his statements resonate more during recent national crises.
“It’s hard for the vice president to break through,” McAuliffe said.
But some, including the Trump campaign, have made hay of what appears to be the 77-year-old’s advanced cognitive decline whenever he does go before the cameras.
Biden’s comment on MLK wasn’t the only mistake the former vice president made on Thursday. At one point during the roundtable, he appeared to lose his train of thought completely while he was reading his notes.
“You know the rapidly rising, umm, uh, in with, uh, with I, uh, don’t know,” he said.
“I don’t know”: Joe Biden gets lost reading his own notes https://t.co/PThNnab6Vr pic.twitter.com/c2O3Efc4sB
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) June 11, 2020