November 1st 2024.
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden made some comments that sparked controversy among Latino activists. His remarks were in response to racist comments made by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe at a Trump rally, where he referred to Puerto Rico as a "floating island of garbage." The president, according to a transcript prepared by official White House stenographers, stated that "the only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters." However, when the transcript was released by the White House press office, his words were altered to read "supporter's" instead of "supporters."
This change drew objections from federal workers responsible for documenting the president's remarks for historical purposes. An internal email obtained by The Associated Press revealed that the press office had altered the transcript after conferring with the president himself. The head of the stenographers' office called this a breach of protocol and a violation of the integrity of the transcript.
The alteration of the transcript came amidst a wave of media inquiries about Biden's comments. His words clashed with Vice President Kamala Harris' speech outside the White House, where she called for treating Americans of different ideologies with respect. The Trump campaign quickly took advantage of the situation to fundraise, and Trump even held a photo op inside a garbage truck to mock Biden's criticism.
Harris later distanced herself from Biden's comments, stating that she strongly disagrees with any criticism of people based on who they vote for. The press office had asked the stenographers to quickly produce a transcript of the call, but any edits were supposed to be approved by their supervisor. However, the press office went ahead and published the altered transcript on the White House website and distributed it to the press and on social media.
The supervisor, who is a career employee of the White House, raised concerns about the press office's actions in an email to top officials. They emphasized the importance of adhering to consistent protocol for editing, approving, and releasing transcripts for authenticity and legitimacy. The supervisor declined to comment further and referred questions to the White House press office.
When asked for a comment, the White House senior deputy press secretary did not address the alteration of the transcript and instead referred to the president's tweet, where he clarified that he was referring to Hinchcliffe's hateful rhetoric at the Trump rally. Meanwhile, House Republicans are considering launching an investigation into this matter, and they have accused the White House staff of releasing a false transcript. They have called on the administration to retain all documents and internal communications related to Biden's remarks and the release of the altered transcript.
In their letter to the White House counsel, they stated that staff cannot rewrite the words of the president for political reasons, and this action may be a violation of the Presidential Records Act of 1978. AAMER MADHANI reported from Las Vegas on this issue.
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