Top 10 Worst Joe Biden Gaffes

Look, we get it: Biden is known to stutter, and we’re not making fun of that! What we’re in awe of here is the ex-president’s almost impressive gift for butchering people’s names, and in this case, forgetting them entirely. Highly decorated four-star general Lloyd Austin, Biden’s pick for secretary of defense, bears an impressive resume, and that’s before you add in the fact that he was the first Black person to fill the role. Unfortunately, according to Biden, that seems to be the most memorable thing about him. In a July 2024 interview with Black Entertainment Television (or BET), Biden struggled to remember Austin’s name when discussing his record of Black appointees, giving him a… well, let’s say a bare-bones description.

Yes, you read that right. Remember President Biden’s disastrous performance in the first presidential debate of 2024? The one that led to literally dozens of calls for him to step down and resign? Yeah, you remember. While there were several moments that had Biden supporters watching through their fingers, we had to go with the one that found the then-president victoriously claiming that he had… beaten Medicare? White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre later clarified that Biden had intended to say he had beaten “big pharma,” but the damage had been done. Just weeks later, on July 21, Biden announced that he was withdrawing from the presidential race, and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor.

Before their friendship had time to blossom, Biden and Barack Obama were rivals, both seeking the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. The two couldn’t have been more different: Obama, then the face of a new generation of leadership, and Biden, the passionate elder statesman. While, of course, Obama was eventually elected and selected Biden as his VP, a 2007 gaffe appeared to reveal Biden’s true thoughts. Interviewed by reporters the same day he filed paperwork to run, Biden shared the following: “I mean, you got the first sort of mainstream African-American [...]... who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.” Biden was on the receiving end of (well-deserved) criticism for his awkward, inappropriate remarks.

No, sorry, this was never a possibility that Biden actually floated. But can you imagine the comedic possibilities that a Biden-Trump presidential ticket would offer? This characteristically baffling Biden blunder happened at the 2024 NATO summit in Washington. What was intended as a statement of support for Kamala Harris ultimately served as yet another embarrassing gaffe on Biden’s part. Responding to Reuters reporter Jeff Mason’s question as to whether or not he had any concerns about Harris’ ability to face Trump, Biden spoke before thinking and referred to his VP as “Vice President Trump.” Yeah, maybe this was a sign that he should’ve harbored some concerns…

Wanna know what might be the worst part of this particular gaffe? It happened mere hours after our last entry, the “Vice President Trump” slip-up. Yes, that’s the same day. Whatever you think of the former president, at least he doesn’t… waste time? Just ahead of a news conference at the aforementioned NATO summit, Biden introduced Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy as… “President Putin.” You know, the leader of the country literally invading Zelenskyy’s Ukraine? To his credit, Zelenskyy played it cool when prompted by Irish reporters the following Saturday. The leader from Ukraine graciously shrugged Biden’s goof off, saying “the United States gave a lot of support for Ukrainians. We can forget some mistakes, I think so.”

It’s probably worth noting that, by the time Biden uttered this no-holds-barred take, he wasn’t even the Democratic presidential nominee anymore. A late-October Trump rally held at Madison Square Garden yielded a number of controversial moments. Chiefly among them, though, was comedian and “Kill Tony” podcast host Tony Hinchcliffe’s remarks about Puerto Rico. In a poorly-received joke that was speculated to have nearly cost Trump the election, Hinchcliffe referred to the U.S. territory as a “floating island of garbage.” A Biden attempt to rebuke Hinchcliffe’s racist remarks only ignited further controversy, with the then-president declaring that “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters.”

Once again, it feels important to remember that Biden’s penchant for gaffes and misstatements long predates his presidency. The former president, vice president, and Delaware senator has routinely been taken to task for exaggeration, embellishment, and even outright lying. In fact, before his 2020 presidential campaign, Biden even referred to himself as “a gaffe machine.” Case in point: an embarrassing February 2020 incident in which Biden repeatedly claimed that he’d been arrested in South Africa while trying to see future president Nelson Mandela in the 1970s. Biden even asserted that Mandela had personally thanked him for his efforts. Eventually, the Biden campaign was forced to concede that the incident hadn’t occurred as the former vice president had described it.

Oof. This is one slip-up that’s really, really hard to make sense of. Speaking at a 2019 town hall in Des Moines, Iowa, Biden regrettably asserted that “We have this notion that somehow if you’re poor, you cannot do it. Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.” While the then-presidential candidate immediately tried to correct himself, it didn’t take long for President Trump’s reelection campaign to seize on Biden’s painful choice of words. According to Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s deputy campaign manager, the future president was attempting to “make the point that all children deserve a fair shot, and children born into lower-income circumstances are just as smart as those born to wealthy parents.”

During an interview on the “Breakfast Club” morning show with host Charlemagne Tha God, Biden uttered a now-infamous statement: “If you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump then you ain’t black.” Almost immediately, people from all sides of the political aisle strongly condemned Biden’s comment, yet another awkward, racially-charged remark in a series of them. While Biden made a swift apology, admitting that he shouldn’t have been “so cavalier,” Republican senator Tim Scott remarked that “I’d say I’m surprised, but it’s sadly par for the course for Democrats to take the black community for granted and brow beat those that don’t agree.”

When Biden was running for the 2020 Democratic presidential nominee, a 2017 video surfaced that featured him spinning a long, confusing yarn about working as a lifeguard in 1962 Delaware. In the story, Biden claims that he was involved in a dispute with local bad boy “Corn Pop,” who led a Delawarean gang called “the Romans,” who threatened the future president with physical violence. While the Internet reacted with disbelief at what sounded like an implausible story, evidence emerged supporting Biden’s account, including “Corn Pop’s” 2016 obituary. So, with that settled, we have one more question… there are gangs in Delaware?


Which Joe Biden gaffe had your jaw on the floor? Are there any you feel we missed? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!