US President Joe Biden has made a remark some media outlets have deemed "crass", as he was speaking at a Lunar New Year event held at the White House this week.
"It's a time of renewal and reflection, hope and possibilities — for good over evil, for sharing meals, for celebrating firecra- - no firecrackers tonight,” the POTUS said. "No, I'm serious. I was thinking about that, you know. If things hadn’t been like they'd been the last couple years, we should have fireworks outside."
As one US newspaper points out, Biden made this remark less than a week after a deadly shooting at a ballroom in Monterey Park, California. The attack occurred on January 21, when a lone gunman armed with a semi-automatic weapon opened fire on people who gathered to celebrate the coming of the Lunar New Year, killing 11 before taking his own life. The perpetrator and the majority of his victims were of Asian descent.
Mere days after that shooting, on January 23, an employee of a mushroom farm in Half Moon Bay, California shot and killed seven people before he was apprehended by authorities.
The president did refer to both shootings in his speech, saying: "Our prayers are with the people of Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay, and after yet another spree of gun violence in America."
He also claimed that he asked Democratic Rep. Judy Chu, Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus and former mayor of Monterey Park, whether he should visit the sites of these tragedies or hold the Lunar New Year celebration at the White House.
"And she felt very strongly. She said, 'We have to move forward'," Biden said. "Her message was: Don’t give into fear and sorrow. Don’t do that. Stand in solidarity in the spirit of toughness that this holiday is all about."