“The Only Garbage I See”: Biden’s Comment Sparks Heated Debate on CNN

President Joe Biden’s recent remarks at a rally overshadowed Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign appearance at the White House Ellipse, attended by a record-breaking 75,000 people, as controversy swirled around his comment allegedly labeling Trump supporters as “garbage.”

CNN’s This Morning kicked off the day with a segment analyzing the remark, which Republicans claim was a slur against Trump supporters. However, the White House pushed back, releasing a transcript clarifying that Biden had aimed his comment at a comedian’s offensive remark about Puerto Rico rather than at Trump supporters.

“The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporter’s – his – his demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American,” Biden said, according to the corrected transcript. Despite this clarification, the debate over his words continued, with Axios correspondent Alex Thompson weighing in critically.

Thompson suggested Biden’s struggle to articulate his message coherently was becoming a recurring issue. “The sad reality is because this president is no longer able to coherently and consistently articulate a message,” Thompson said, attributing Biden’s withdrawal from the ticket to concerns over his communication abilities and implying that Harris preferred not to have him on the campaign trail.

CNN’s panelists had varied responses to Biden’s comment. Senior political analyst Mark Preston suggested Biden’s team might embrace the remark, clarifying that he meant it to condemn only Trump’s racist supporters. Meanwhile, Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson argued that Trump’s appeal stems largely from his defense of supporters who feel stigmatized.

“There is nothing more powerful for someone to hear a compliment – ‘someone likes me’ – and Donald Trump’s stronghold on Republican voters is because he came around and said, ‘The world tells you that you’re racist… and I don’t think that – I like you,’” she explained, likening Biden’s comment to the motivational “bulletin board material” sports coaches use to galvanize their teams.

CNN analyst Karen Finney was more dismissive, calling the debate “absurd.” She pointed to past incendiary comments by Trump, such as references to “s–thole countries” and remarks about immigrants that she argued have set a much lower bar. “I think this is so absurd,” Finney said.

“If we’re going to sit here and compare crazy statements by old white guys, let’s please do that… When [Trump] talks about s–thole countries and he talks about rapists and murderers… Joe Biden misspoke, he said something stupid – he’s not at the top of the ticket. Donald Trump is at the top of the ticket.”

Thompson countered that Biden’s words would still resonate, as Trump’s campaign planned to make it a significant talking point. Finney, however, argued that Trump’s extensive record of divisive rhetoric outweighed Biden’s recent misstep. “To my mind, there’s no comparison to that, based on the kinds of things that Donald Trump has been saying all campaign… and he doesn’t even apologize for any of it,” she said.

Finney further dismissed the debate as trivial compared to more serious concerns, citing comments by Steve Bannon about potential election sabotage and violence. “We’re talking about where an apostrophe goes. Are you joking?” she asked, highlighting what she saw as a misplaced focus. The heated exchange underscored the intense scrutiny of candidates’ rhetoric as the election approaches, with each side seizing on verbal missteps to galvanize voters and shape campaign narratives.