'The Mind Boggles': Internet Reels as Biden 'Applauds China' Instead of Canada in Latest Blunder
05:39 GMT 25.03.2023 (Updated: 06:05 GMT 25.03.2023)
© AP Photo / Andrew HarnikUS President Joe Biden speaks during a visit to Canada on March 24, 2023.
© AP Photo / Andrew Harnik
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As 80-year-old Joe Biden addressed Canada’s parliament on Friday during his visit to Ottawa, the US president lived up to his gaffemeister reputation, feeding into persisting speculation among Republicans that the oldest president in America's history is not mentally fit to run the country.
US President Joe Biden mistakenly hailed "China" instead of "Canada" as he addressed parliamentarians on Friday as part of his official visit to Ottawa.
Commenting on the agreement on diverting asylum seekers, reportedly struck between the two countries ahead of Biden’s official visit as part of a crackdown on the migration surge, America’s octogenarian president said:
"Today, I applaud China for stepping up,” but quickly added, "Excuse me, I applaud Canada."
POTUS then quipped, “You can tell what I’m thinking about China. I won’t get into that yet.”
Under the agreement, officials on both sides of the US-Canadian border are allowed to turn back asylum seekers heading in either direction. Canada will now be turning back immigrants at the unofficial migrant crossing point of Roxham Road, while in exchange offering a legal refugee program for 15,000 migrants annually from Latin American countries.
But the new gaffe from Biden demonstrates that, on the one hand, China is indeed hugely present at the back of his mind... But the fresh verbal blunder is also another in a long list of startling, eyebrow-raising remarks and actions that have fueled speculation regarding the 80-year-old's mental competence and fitness for office.
On social media, such oopsies churned out by Joe Biden never fail to stir up a response, and this occasion was no exception.
© Photo : TwitterTwitter screenshot.
Twitter screenshot.
© Photo : Twitter
© Photo : TwitterTwitter screenshot.
Twitter screenshot.
© Photo : Twitter
© Photo : TwitterTwitter screenshot.
Twitter screenshot.
© Photo : Twitter
© Photo : TwitterTwitter screenshot.
Twitter screenshot.
© Photo : Twitter
© Photo : TwitterTwitter screenshot.
Twitter screenshot.
© Photo : Twitter
© Photo : TwitterTwitter screenshot.
Twitter screenshot.
© Photo : Twitter
Afterwards, as Joe Biden and Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressed reporters, Biden came close to another geographic, so to say, slip-up, by almost saying Japan when weighing in on China’s relationship with Russia. On this occasion, however, the Democrat stopped mid-word at "Japa…"
Incidentally, when Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley's recently proposed introducing mental competency tests for politicians over age 75, in a distinct nod at the Democratic POTUS, Jill Biden dismissed the idea as "ridiculous." When asked if her husband would consider taking a mental capacity test if he were to be re-elected for another term at the White House, during an interview with a US media outlet, the US first lady said, "We would never even discuss something like that."