Biden Faces Backlash for Controversial Remarks on 9/11: The Story Unfolds

President Biden Facing Criticism for False Claim about Ground Zero Visit

President Biden is drawing heat over remarks he made during a speech in Alaska to honor the 9/11 attacks. He stated, “Ground Zero in New York—I remember standing there the next day, and looking at the building. I felt like I was looking through the gates of hell, it looked so devastating because of the way—from where you could stand.” However, according to the Messenger and the New York Post, Biden was not at Ground Zero on September 12, 2001. A White House official informed CNN that the president visited the site as a senator nine days after the attack.

While it may have been a simple mistake, CNN, acting as a fact-checker, claims that this false claim aligns with a pattern of Biden making inaccurate statements about his past. In fact, the article outlines nine examples, with three of them coming from a single recent speech. The Washington Post previously reported on how candidate Biden seemed to mix up multiple events in one war story. This incident has attracted criticism from Biden’s detractors, including Ted Cruz, who tweeted a video of the 9/11 comments with a simple “Um….” Additionally, Biden’s image was not aided by an unusual press conference in Vietnam the previous night.

During the press conference, the 80-year-old Biden “spoke softly and appeared tired,” according to Michael Shear of the New York Times. Shear describes how Biden rambled on, discussing a John Wayne movie, which left some members of the audience deeply perplexed. The press conference was abruptly ended by press chief Karine Jean-Pierre while the president was still answering questions, as shown in this CNN video. Shear notes that this event only added fuel to Biden’s critics, emphasizing the belief that Biden’s age has affected his ability to perform his duties. This sentiment appears to be shared by many Democrats.