MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell came to the defense of 2020 Democratic front-runner Joe Biden on Friday morning. The former vice president was facing backlash for a mistake he made the day before in Iowa.
Mitchell appeared on Today Friday morning and chalked up Biden’s latest mistake as coming “after a long day and night.”
While speaking at a town hall for the Asian & Latino Coalition PAC in Iowa, Biden said: “The other thing we should do is we should challenge these students. We should challenge students in these schools that have advanced placement classes in these schools. We have this notion that somehow if you’re poor you cannot do it.”
“Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids — ” Biden stated and then he quickly corrected himself, “ — wealthy kids, black kids, Asian kids.”
Mitchell said that he’s “facing a Trump campaign counter-attack,” where they are “seizing on a few words on the campaign trail.”
“The former vice president accusing the president of being a racist who emboldens white supremacists by aligning himself with their cause, but it’s Biden’s bungling of his own remarks that’s making headlines this morning,” she added. “After a long day and night at the Iowa State Fair, speaking to a group of predominantly Asian and Hispanic voters.”
Mitchell then aired the gaffe and followed up, “The Trump campaign quickly seizing on just the white kids comment. Rapid response director Andrew Clark tweeting out a video clip that notably did not include the full remarks.”
Biden’s campaign manager released a statement about the mistake Friday morning, claiming that he “misspoke and immediately corrected himself during a refrain he often uses to make the point that all children deserve a fair shot, and children born into lower-income circumstances are just as smart as those born to wealthy parents.”
