Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden has been accused of disrespecting the American troops by calling them 'stupid bastards' and 'dull bunch'. Biden used the term in a resurfaced clip that has gone viral on the social media platform.
With the US Presidential elections just a few weeks away, the controversial claim has put the former Vice President on a tough spot. The viral clip is from Biden's speech to the troops at the Al-Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates in March 2016.
Was Biden Actually Disrespecting the Troops?
The viral clip was shared on US President Donald Trump's official YouTube page under the title: "Joe Biden called American servicemembers 'stupid bastards.' He must apologize!" The 18-second clip was uploaded on September 26 and has been viewed over 967,000 times since then.
The video shows Biden standing at the podium with his wife Jill Biden by his side. "I want you to know notwithstanding what you may hear about me, I have incredibly good judgment. One, I married Jill. And two, I appointed Johnson to the academy. I just want you to know that. Clap for that, you stupid bastards. Man, you are a dull bunch. Must be slow here, man. I don't know," Biden said in the viral clip.
Speaking to Politifact, Biden's presidential campaign claimed that he made the comment in a joking way to draw applause for Lt. Karen Johnson.
"Vice President Biden was jokingly encouraging the audience to clap for an airwoman on the stage, and a number of service members can be seen laughing and smiling at the comment," Andrew Bates, a spokesperson for Biden's campaign, told the outlet.
Biden's Comments Draws Backfire on Social Media
Despite Biden praising and thanking the troops in his original 30-minute speech, it was the viral clip that generated a lot of hate mongering against the Presidential nominee on various social media platforms.
"Not only did he call them stupid bastards, but right after that he insulted them by calling them slow!" commented a user on the video.
"Clap for that you stupid bastards hehe jk. Trump doesn't have to tell people when to clap for him. All the Biden audiences are falling asleep and he has to remind them where they are by telling them when to clap. His defense- the teleprompter told me to say it," added another on Twitter.
"Never serving in the Military, Biden has no authority, to even jokingly call Air Force, stupid bastards," opined another user.
