Joe Biden's Israel visit on Wednesday was marked with yet another gaffe, with the President mistakenly saying we must keep alive the "honor of the Holocaust." However, he soon corrected himself to say "horror of the Holocaust" but that didn't help him much, as social media users immediately started trolling him for his latest gaffe.
Moreover, Biden also pronounced the name of the Jerusalem Holocaust Museum wrong. The gaffe was made immediately after Biden landed in Israel. Biden opened the first visit to the Middle East during his presidency, one that will last two days and involve talks with Israeli, Palestinian, and Saudi Arabian officials.
Almost Real Horror
Biden made the slip shortly after landing in Israel to begin a two-day meeting with the leaders of the Middle Eastern nation. Interestingly, he didn't look embarrassed at all, as always.
"What am I doing now?" Biden asked as he stepped off Air Force One in Tel Aviv, Israel on Wednesday. Then came his brief speech where he made the big slip. He started his speech by announcing his plan to visit the nation's Holocaust museum, Yad Vashem.
"Later today, I will once more return to the hallowed ground of ... Yad Vashem to honor the 6 million Jewish lives that were stolen in a genocide and continue — which we must do every, every day — continue to bear witness, to keep alive the truth and honor of the Holocaust, before quickly correcting to say, "horror of the Holocaust."
He then continued without any reaction as others were left surprised by his gaffe. "...honor those we lost, so that we never, ever forget that lesson, you know, and to continue our shared, unending work to fight the poison of anti-Semitism wherever it raises its ugly head," Biden continued.
Interestingly, Biden's speech was uploaded on the White House website also with the word "honor" struck off next to "honor".
Following that, social media users immediately started trolling him. This is Biden's second big gaffe within a span of two days.
Doing it Again
On Monday, the President confused the date of the Parkland school shooting during his speech celebrating the passage of a bipartisan gun bill. Biden mistakenly said that the Parkland school shooting took place in 1918 whereas the actual year was 2018.
"Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida — 1918, 17 dead, 17 injured," Biden said as he welcomed the passage of a gun control measure that, among other changes, will strengthen background checks for young people interested in purchasing firearms.
This isn't anything new from Biden. He frequently makes mistakes, tells untrue stories, or pronounces words incorrectly. He has explained some of the mistakes as being caused by a childhood stammer, but the errors frequently prompt Republicans, especially, to question his suitability for the government.
Most recently, Biden read a teleprompter reminding him to repeat what he just said. The president said: "Repeat the line."
That prompted the world's wealthiest man, Elon Musk, to tweet: "Whoever controls the teleprompter is the real president."
Also, in June, Biden struggled to read "LGBTQI+" from a teleprompter, saying instead, "LGBTQL, I, excuse me, plus."
In May, he struggled to say AANHPI — a term for people of Asian or Pacific Islander ancestry that includes Native Hawaiians — and instead said, "AAN- — NH — PI — aye, aye, aye, aye, aye."
It needs to be seen when Biden makes a similar mistake again given that it has become a feature of almost all his speeches these days.
Since taking office, this is Biden's first trip to the Middle East. The president is expected to reassure Israel's worried leaders that he is determined to halt Iran's expanding nuclear program and that, "as a last resort," he would be willing to use force.
Iran is seen by Israel as its greatest enemy due to its nuclear program, calls for the destruction of Israel, and support for militant groups that are hostile to Israel throughout the region.
On Thursday, the United States and Israel are set to announce a joint statement that would enhance their existing military connections and reiterate previous calls for military action to halt Iran's nuclear development. Before Biden came, a top Israeli official pledged that both nations would use "all elements of their national power against the Iranian nuclear threat."
