ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — Speaking at a campaign rally in Rocky Mount on Wednesday, Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump criticized President Joe Biden for his recent comments where he appeared to call Trump supporters “garbage.”
According to CBS News, Biden was speaking on a video call with Latino activists Tuesday when he tried to address comedian Tony Hitchcliffe calling Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” during a Trump campaign event last week in New York. According to a video obtained by CBS, Biden appeared to say the following:
“The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters,” Biden seemed to say. “His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable.”
In the wake of the video’s release, the White House has tried to play damage control, releasing a transcript of the call with a statement noting that “supporters” should instead be the possessive “supporter’s.”
Biden took to X to try and address the blowback to his comments. Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris has tried to distance herself from the situation, saying Wednesday that she strongly disagrees with “any criticism of people based on who they vote for.”
Trump said Wednesday that Biden’s comments were worse than when Hillary Clinton was quoted saying half his supporters fit into a “basket of deplorables” during the leadup to the 2016 election.
“In North Carolina, these are people who have been devastated (by Hurricane Helene),” Trump said Wednesday. “They broke records in every single area, and some people didn’t even have a home anymore. How great is that? And they have the nerve to call you garbage.”
Trump also spent time questioning the electoral process, casting doubt on the integrity of early and absentee voting. He suggested going back to a one-day presidential election with only paper ballots, something he said would show that he has the support of the majority of the country.
“If God came down from on high and said ‘I’ll be the vote tabulator for the day,’ I think I would win California,” he said. “We need God as our vote counter, just one time every four years.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Harris held a campaign rally in Raleigh, where she was joined by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper. Harris will hold another event in Charlotte on Saturday, the final day of early voting in North Carolina.
Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz is in Greensboro on Wednesday to meet with voters. Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance will be in High Point on Thursday for a town hall event. He will also be in Selma on Friday.
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