Russian state media started their relationship with the newly-formed US government on a bitter note by blasting Joe Biden as a "boring, old man" and calling new First Lady Jill as "charmless" during a television show. In stark contrast to the sharp criticism of the new presidential couple, they had high praise for the "feminine charm" of Melania Trump and her "fantastic dresses" on the same show.
The comments once again show the souring relationship between the Washington and Moscow. The humiliation faced by the Trump family with a series of social media bans for the ex-president and ratings casting wife Melania as the most unpopular First Lady in history also seem to have been overlooked by the Russian state media, which decided to take a dig at Biden and his wife instead.
Starting on a Bitter Note
Hours after Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United State, Russian state TV on its lunchtime show Sixty Minutes on Channel One mocked him as a 78-year-old forgetful, old man obsessed with minority rights. However, they didn't stick to Biden but also blasted him for his choice of officials to lead the administration and his wife Jill.
The show led with observations about the skin colors and sexual orientations of Biden's nominations for government. The show indirectly favored Trump, with the host Olga Skabeyeva saying that Biden had projected calls for unity but in fact he was more interested in "re-educating and fighting with" the ex-president's supporters.
Skkabeyeva also said that by choosing Army general Lloyd Austin, "a black man," Biden had already signaled that he would "start a war with whites in the army."
'Boring Old Man, Charmless Lady'
Not only the host, everyone on the show including the co-host and Aleksey Zhuralyev, a deputy for the ruling United Russia, continued to roast Biden. Zhuralyev even went on to dismiss Biden first speech as a "boring, old man's" spiel. He also said that the new president was showing that "he was only interested in minority rights."
Needless to say, the comments are a reflection of Kremlin's views as President Vladimir Putin has been outspoken about his desire to curb any liberalization of laws concerning LGBTQ rights in Russia. The comments came as Biden in one of his very first steps signed an executive order that would now allow transgender athletes to participate in women's sports.
"Seventeen new anti-Trump laws," mocked Yevgeny Popov, the shows co-host. "Yes, the return of transgender soldiers to the American army," he said with a sarcastic smile.
Instead, the host and co-host were all praise for Melania Trump, who has been a favorite with them, and dismissed the new first lady as "charmless." "We will miss Melania and her fantastic dresses. The charmless Jill Biden is no comparison," said Skabeyeva. Unfortunately this praise comes even after Melania received a 47 percent unfavorable rating making her the most unpopular presidential wife in history.
