Former Vice President Joe Biden finally made it official on Thursday — he is running for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2020.
But the self-admitted “gaffe machine” wasted no time in tripping over his own tongue as he uttered a line to reporters that many have described as an attack on gays.
The Gaffe Machine
Biden spoke with a group of reporters shortly after he publicly announced his candidacy when one of them asked if he had a “message for the rest of world.”
“Yes,” he said. “America is coming back like we used to be: ethical, straight, telling the truth…supporting our allies. All those good things.”
Take a look:
Make America Straight Again?
Biden’s use of the phrase, “America is coming back,” was reminiscent of President Donald Trump’s 2016 rallying cry, “Make America Great Again” — a similarity that garnered some attention among the media.
But it was the former vice president’s use of the word “straight” to describe an ideal America that really raised some eyebrows among LGBTQ advocates.
Indeed, Biden’s use of the word was viewed by some as a subtle dig at the openly gay South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who in recent weeks has surged in popularity as a 2020 hopeful.
It also renewed speculation about Biden’s support of the gay community.
While he was lauded for standing in favor of gay marriage even before former President Barack Obama publicly supported it, Biden has a sticky past when it comes to the issue.
In 1973, he reportedly even believed gays might pose a security risk to the U.S., saying in an informal setting: “My gut reaction is that they are security risks, but I must admit I haven’t given this much thought.”
Looking Forward
In all likelihood, Biden meant to use the word “straight” in an innocent way. Indeed, most definitions describe the term as maintaining a direct course, speaking candidly, or being honest and fair.
But in what could have been construed as offensive — particularly amid Biden’s competition with Buttigieg for the 2020 nomination — the term also refers to not deviating from generally accepted, conventional behaviors, and of course, it’s used commonly nowadays as a synonym for “heterosexual.”
With that in mind, Biden’s choice to insinuate that America should return to its “straight” roots has likely cost him a few points among Democrats ahead of next year’s primaries — and with the self-proclaimed “gaffe machine” now officially in the spotlight, there’s surely more missteps to come.
249 Responses
hello!,I like your writing so much! percentage we keep in touch more about your post on AOL? I need an expert on this space to solve my problem. Maybe that is you! Looking forward to look you.
I really appreciate this post. Ive been looking all over for this! Thank goodness I found it on Bing. You have made my day! Thank you again
This is the proper weblog for anyone who needs to seek out out about this topic. You realize so much its almost arduous to argue with you (not that I actually would wantHaHa). You definitely put a brand new spin on a topic thats been written about for years. Nice stuff, just nice!
Thank you for the auspicious writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it. Look advanced to far added agreeable from you! However, how can we communicate?
Oh my goodness! an amazing article dude. Thank you Nevertheless I am experiencing concern with ur rss . Dont know why Unable to subscribe to it. Is there anyone getting similar rss problem? Anyone who is aware of kindly respond. Thnkx
Excellent blog here! Also your web site loads up fast! What web host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link to your host? I wish my web site loaded up as fast as yours lol
Wow! This can be one particular of the most beneficial blogs We have ever arrive across on this subject. Basically Magnificent. I am also an expert in this topic therefore I can understand your hard work.
136072 663533so a lot very good info on here, : D. 989957
Hi there, You’ve performed a fantastic job. I will certainly digg it and individually suggest to my friends. I’m confident they’ll be benefited from this website.
Great beat ! I would like to apprentice even as you amend your web site, how can i subscribe for a weblog site? The account aided me a acceptable deal. I were a little bit acquainted of this your broadcast offered bright clear idea
Id need to test with you here. Which is not one thing I usually do! I enjoy studying a post that will make people think. Also, thanks for permitting me to remark!
I used to be very pleased to find this web-site.I needed to thanks on your time for this wonderful learn!! I definitely having fun with every little bit of it and I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you blog post.
Hello my friend! I want to say that this article is amazing, nice written and include almost all significant infos. I would like to see more posts like this.
hey there and thank you for your info Ive certainly picked up something new from right here. I did however expertise several technical points using this site, since I experienced to reload the site lots of times previous to I could get it to load properly. I had been wondering if your web host is OK? Not that I am complaining, but sluggish loading instances times will very frequently affect your placement in google and can damage your high-quality score if ads and marketing with Adwords. Well Im adding this RSS to my e-mail and could look out for much more of your respective fascinating content. Make sure you update this again very soon..
Usually I do not read post on blogs, however I would like to say that this write-up very forced me to take a look at and do so! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thank you, quite great post.
Its actually a cool and helpful piece of information. Im glad that you simply shared this helpful info with us. Please stay us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
My brother recommended I might like this blog. He was once entirely right. This put up truly made my day. You cann’t consider simply how much time I had spent for this info! Thank you!
you are really a good webmaster. The website loading speed is amazing. It seems that you’re doing any unique trick. Moreover, The contents are masterwork. you have done a wonderful job on this topic!
Magnificent goods from you, man. I have understand your stuff previous to and you’re just extremely magnificent. I actually like what you’ve acquired here, certainly like what you are saying and the way in which you say it. You make it enjoyable and you still take care of to keep it smart. I cant wait to read far more from you. This is actually a terrific website.
Awsome blog! I am loving it!! Will be back later to read some more. I am bookmarking your feeds also.
Hi just wanted to give you a brief heads up and let you know a few of the images aren’t loading properly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different internet browsers and both show the same outcome.
Im not sure where you’re getting your information, but great topic. I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more. Thanks for magnificent information I was looking for this info for my mission.
Hello! I’m at work surfing around your blog from my new iphone! Just wanted to say I love reading through your blog and look forward to all your posts! Keep up the excellent work!
Thanks a bunch for sharing this with all of us you really know what you’re talking about! Bookmarked. Please additionally talk over with my web site =). We could have a link change agreement among us!
Good website! I really love how it is easy on my eyes and the data are well written. I’m wondering how I might be notified whenever a new post has been made. I have subscribed to your feed which must do the trick! Have a great day!
When I originally commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four e-mails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Thanks!
Hey! I know this is kind of off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this site? I’m getting sick and tired of WordPress because I’ve had problems with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be awesome if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
This design is wicked! You definitely know how to keep a reader amused. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Excellent job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!
With havin so much written content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright violation? My blog has a lot of exclusive content I’ve either written myself or outsourced but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the internet without my permission. Do you know any solutions to help protect against content from being ripped off? I’d definitely appreciate it.
Greetings from Idaho! I’m bored at work so I decided to browse your blog on my iphone during lunch break. I really like the information you provide here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home. I’m amazed at how quick your blog loaded on my cell phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, amazing site!
524961 861522woah i like yur web site. It truly helped me with the info i wus seeking for. Appcriciate it, will bookmark. 236291
Terrific post but I was wondering if you could write a litte more on this topic? I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate a little bit more. Thanks!
I think this is a real great post.Much thanks again. Want more.
Looking forward to reading more. Great article post.Thanks Again. Want more.
Hey! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be ok. I’m undoubtedly enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates.
Hey, thanks for the blog post.Really thank you!
We absolutely love your blog and find most of your post’s to be precisely what I’m looking for. Would you offer guest writers to write content to suit your needs? I wouldn’t mind producing a post or elaborating on a number of the subjects you write about here. Again, awesome blog!
Awesome blog post.Much thanks again. Cool.
high authority dofollow backlinks gov
Fantastic blog article.Much thanks again. Want more.