Two years after their last debate, Biden jabs at Trump: ‘What a loser’
Former President Joe Biden, who rallied Maryland Democrats at his state party fundraiser Saturday night, condemned the actions of the man who succeeded him in the White House and painted him as arrogant and corrupt.
“Tearing down the East Wing of the White House to make way for the ballroom, naming the Kennedy Center after him, building an arch in his honor, even hiring his own pool man to fix the reflecting pool are not just vanity projects. Wow! What a loser,” Biden told attendees at the gala, held at a casino in Maryland.
“The reflecting pool reflects something worse than the narcissism and incompetence at the core of this administration,” he continued. “This is corruption, corruption, brazen, blatant corruption. Corruption on a scale never before seen in any administration in American history.”
Biden’s 10-minute speech was one of his harshest criticisms of President Donald Trump since he left office. He delivered this exactly two years after stepping onto a different stage. Presidential debate against Trump on CNNIt was a moment that derailed the Democratic president’s second-term ambitions and changed the course of his political legacy.
“What makes me angry is that Trump wants to give taxpayer money, your money, to the January 6 rioters. That’s what he wants to do,” Biden told the crowd. “These people don’t deserve compensation. They deserve to be locked up for a long, long time.”
Biden has not been shy about criticizing Trump since leaving the White House, accepting invitations to party events in Maryland, South Dakota and his home state of Delaware last month to try to rally Democrats during Trump’s second term.
But it comes at a time when he continues to navigate a complicated post-presidency, with many in his party frustrated with how he will handle the 2024 election. recently CNN poll conducted by SSRS It found that only 30 percent of Americans have a positive view of Biden; that rate was lower than at any point during his time in the White House.
His latest speech also coincides with his family’s re-emergence onto the political scene, to the chagrin of some Democrats. Former First Lady Dr. Jill Biden published her memoirs and went on a promotional tour, offering her perspective on the 2024 saga. many Democrats who felt that this reopened old party wounds.
“We had a duty to win, but we didn’t,” said former spokesman Andrew Bates, one of Biden’s fiercest defenders. New York Post. “I think about this all the time. But I don’t understand why this painful conversation for the party needs to be reopened to the public at this time.”
When asked about the comment at a book tour stop in Washington, D.C., the former First Lady clapped back, “Call me and say it to my face,” a response that drew criticism from many former aides. (A source familiar with the matter said Dr. Biden and Bates spoke the next day.)
The Bidens’ son Hunter appears everywhere and talks about everything. He has amassed a large following on social media (over 800,000 followers on X), where he regularly posts about his past struggles with drug addiction and thoughts about politics. He has participated in lengthy podcast interviews, including a two-hour sit-down with controversial right-wing podcaster Candace Owens.
In an interview with California Governor Gavin Newsom’s podcast, Hunter Biden spoke openly about how one of his father’s most controversial decisions will be remembered.
Hunter Biden said of his decision to pardon his father after he insisted he wouldn’t do it: “He chose me over his legacy. Because no matter what you say, it’s going to be one of the first things written about him.”
Biden’s attempts to shape his legacy may come into clearer focus in the coming months. The former president has spent most of the year working on his memoir, but its official release date has not yet been announced.
The presidential library got off to a slower start than its predecessors. Biden announced that the building will be located in Delaware, but has not yet announced an official location. A source familiar with the situation said those details could be finalized in the near future.
His team continues to fundraise for the operation, but the eventual library is expected to be much smaller than former President Barack Obama’s $850 million presidential headquarters in Chicago, where Biden and other presidents have been housed. to attend the opening ceremony last week.
All of this comes as the 83-year-old continues to battle prostate cancer, which has metastasized to the bones, and is undergoing radiation and hormone therapy after being diagnosed months after leaving the White House. “I think Joe will live with cancer for the rest of his life,” said Dr.
Jill Biden said in a recent interview with NBC.
keep fighting
Although Biden faces pessimism from some segments of the Democratic Party, he is still looking for ways to help Democrats in any way he can. In the weeks before the primaries, Biden endorsed two former officials in his own administration: Keisha Lance Bottoms, who is running for governor in Georgia, and Dan Koh, a congressional candidate in Massachusetts.
At an event in Maryland on Saturday, Biden visited Gov. Wes Moore and Sen. Chris Van Hollen, two Democrats seen as potential 2028 presidential hopefuls from the state.
Moore introduced Biden at the event and talked about how the former president helped send millions to the state for recovery efforts following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in 2024.
“He not only helped us rebuild, he helped us recover. He transferred federal assets to the city to help clean up the debris because he knew millions needed it, needed it, and relied on it,” Moore said. “While President Biden is not a Marylander by birth, President Biden has helped show us what it means for Maryland to be strong and Baltimore to be strong.”
Democrat Adrienne Green of Baltimore met with Biden before his speech. He said he was excited to meet him and believed he was “good for his age” but also mentioned that both parties need to find a new set of leaders.
“I think they bring wisdom and advice that is valued and should be,” he said. “But frankly, I think we’re at a place and point in both the Democratic and Republican parties where the torch needs to be passed.”
Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride of Delaware is among those with whom Biden meets regularly. The two met for lunch in Delaware last week to talk about President Trump’s impact on the world stage.
“I think voters are interested in the present and the future, and I think we need an approach that engages everyone, that includes the voices of people like Joe Biden and Barack Obama and retired political leaders throughout the history of our party, and I appreciate Joe’s leadership,” McBride said in a phone interview with CNN on Saturday.
Appearing before the Democrats on Saturday night, Biden emphasized that he was “still fighting” for the party while encouraging the Democrats during their fall from power.
“To everyone who loves our country, my message tonight is clear and simple: Get up, damn it. Get up now. Keep up the fight!” He said he would applaud.
For more CNN news and newsletters, create an account at: CNN.com
