WASHINGTON: White House altered the official transcript of President Joe Biden’s remarks about the Trump campaign and “garbage” as it rushed to clarify that his words had been taken out of context, people familiar with the matter said Friday.
The debate over the meaning of Biden’s words ultimately comes down to an apostrophe, which White House press office inserted into the transcript without the authorisation of the Stenography Office, which prepares the official record.
The comments in question came Tuesday as Biden spoke to Latino supporters about Tony Hinchcliffe, a comedian and Trump supporter who said Puerto Rico is a “floating island of garbage.” In the initial transcript, Biden said “the only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters – his, his demonisation of Latinos is unconscionable…” Officials tried to clarify he was talking about Hinchcliffe’s comments, releasing a transcript that rendered the quote as “his supporter’s” demonisation, meaning Hinchcliffe’s demonisation was garbage.
