This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
In what has been described as another "dumpster fire" for the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris administration, just hours before 2024 Election Day, the White House has been accused of a "breach of protocol" for changing the manuscript of what Biden said in order to clean it up.
It was the press office that was accused of changing his comments by literally adding an apostrophe where one appeared not to be in his speech.
He had called Donald Trump's "supporters" "garbage." That was changed to "supporters," suggesting Biden was referencing only a single person, a comedian who earlier had referenced Puerto Rico as a "floating island of garbage."
The stenographers in the White House registered their objection to the manipulation of what will be government records, which will end up in the National Archives.
Constitutional expert Jonathan Turley described the episode as that "dumpster fire."
He pointed out that the legacy media in America previously has been accused over and over of "reframing news or rewriting words" to benefit Biden-Harris.
The "supporters" dispute, he said, "has created a weird dissonance as Democratic politicians denounced what the White House and many in the press denied was said."
It was Director of White House Stenography Amy Sands who protested the press office's manipulation of the words on the transcript, writing, "If there is a difference in interpretation, the Press Office may choose to withhold the transcript but cannot edit it independently. Our Stenography Office transcript — released to our distro, which includes the National Archives — is now different than the version edited and released to the public by Press Office staff … After last night's process, our team would like to reiterate that rush drafts/excerpts the Stenography Office sends to assist the Press Office are not intended for public distribution or as the final version of the transcript. Please avoid sharing rush drafts/excerpts, which are subject to review and might create confusion among staff, media, and the public while our Stenography Office completes a thorough review process."
"Biden himself has described their views as a return of the confederacy and the rise of fascism. Democrats have called the movement a modern form of Nazism and an effort to destroy democracy, round up homosexuals, and create internment camps," Turley noted.
"The problem was the timing. As Harris was denouncing Trump for name-calling and insisting that Democrats are bringing the country together (while condemning Trump as a modern version of Hitler), Biden was literally behind her in the White House, calling tens of millions of Trump supporters 'garbage.'"
"When asked about the internal objections, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates only repeated the prior statement: 'The president confirmed in his tweet on Tuesday evening that he was addressing the hateful rhetoric from the comedian at Trump's Madison Square Garden rally. That was reflected in the transcript,'" Turley pointed out.
Legacy media reporters also have begun admitting what Biden said, "as did CBS News anchor Norah O'Donnell, as a gaffe by President Biden where he, in his explanation, inadvertently called Trump supporters to garbage."
That explanation, however, "ignores years of portraying Trump supporters as seeking to return the United States to the Jim Crowe period or pursuing a neo-Nazi future," Turley said.
The New York Post explained the stenographers who lodged the protest over the language manipulation "are widely considered by reporters who cover the executive branch to be very professional and accurate with their transcriptions. It is highly unusual for the press office to dispute what the stenographers heard."
The report explained that when the stenographers recorded Biden's statement as condemning "supporters," the press office changed it, without approval from the stenographers, to "supporters."
"It is essential to our transcripts' authenticity and legitimacy that we adhere to consistent protocol for requesting edits, approval, and release," the supervisor, a career White House employee, told White House communications officials, including press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
House Republicans were considering launching an investigation into the "false transcript" that then was released, the report said.
The Washington Examiner said it was during an interview on Tuesday that Biden unleashed.
"The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters," referring to former President Donald Trump.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk pointed out, "Biden just called half of America 'garbage,'" and Jack Pandol, National Republican Committee spokesman, said, "This is Joe Biden's 'deplorables' moment. The truth is Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, and House Democrats look down their nose at anyone who wants affordability, safe streets, and a secure border. Every House Democrat enabled Joe Biden's assault on the American Dream, and they must condemn the president's disgusting and divisive comments immediately."
Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking to reporters Wednesday morning on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews, said she "strongly" disagrees with the garbage comment.
Republicans took Biden, already known to be declining in physical and mental capabilities, to task.
"Obama called us clingers. Hillary called deplorables. Kamala calls us fascists. And Biden just called us garbage," Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., charged. "They don't respect us & don't want unity. But we do. We want to Make America Great Again. Our coalition is for ALL AMERICANS. And in 7 days, we will UNITE AMERICA."
Trump was told of the comment onstage at a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
"Please forgive him, for he not knoweth what he said," Trump quipped. Later in the day, he staged a news conference from a garbage truck.
And he posted a comment:
While I am running a campaign of positive solutions to save America, Kamala Harris is running a campaign of hate. She has spent all week comparing her political opponents to the most evil mass murderers in history. Now, on top of everything, Joe Biden calls our supporters "garbage." You can't lead America if you don't love the American People. Kamala Harris and Joe Biden have shown they are both unfit to be President of the United States. I am proud to lead the biggest, broadest, and most important political coalition in American history. We are welcoming historic numbers of Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans, and citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed. It is my desire to be the President of all the people.
Columnist Todd Starnes commented on the Biden slam.
"Former President Trump asked the Lord to forgive President Joe Biden after he called Trump supporters 'garbage,'" he wrote.
Biden even tried to take it back.
On social media, he said, "Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump's supporter at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage—which is the only word I can think of to describe it. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable. That's all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don't reflect who we are as a nation."
It was comic Tony Hinchcliffe who joked about Puerto Rico at a Trump rally recently.