Joe Biden has had SEVERAL gaffes since entering politics, and they seem to become more apparent each day. But his most recent verbal mess-up MAY be the worst one yet. While delivering remarks Friday on the White House South Lawn to celebrate Ketanji Brown Jackson's Senate confirmation, Biden said America can be defined with a single word...but he then completely lost the audience when trying to name it. Glenn and Stu theorize the possibilities for what went wrong.
Transcript
Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors
GLENN: All right. So could we just -- I know this came out on Friday. But we haven't had a chance to talk about it. Could we play that again, please, for the president on Friday.
BIDEN: America is a nation, that can be defined in a single word.
GLENN: Single word.
BIDEN: Excuse me. I was in the foothills of the Himalayas with Xi Jinping, traveling with him. That's when I traveled 17,000 miles when I was Vice President. I don't know that for a fact.
GLENN: I mean, do I need to say anything? I mean, this should be very, very clear.
STU: It's a long word. A lot of hyphens.
GLENN: Which word? Oh, that word that describes America? That single -- I don't know what that single word had to do with the Himalayas. You know, I -- I wish we would have heard a little more about his Sherpa guide.
STU: Nothing says America more than the him lace. That's what I always.
GLENN: Right. Yeah. And maybe he got to it later. Maybe he was like, he did get to his Sherpa guide. And there's one word that describes America, and that is Niblick. Anyway.
STU: That would be more coherent than what we got.
GLENN: It would. It would. He helped me shimmy down ropes. Anyway, I don't know what the him lace has to do with it. I don't know what the 17,000 miles has to do with it. But the other really disturbing thing. Besides not telling us the word. And seemingly not being able to find the word foothills. That's disturbing. The other is, the last sentence there. I don't -- I don't know that for a fact. You -- you don't know what for a fact? That you toured the foothills, or that you traveled 17,000 miles? And when has not knowing the facts ever stopped you? What the hell is that? Sincerely, what is that? You know, he's always off to -- my mother was Amelia Earhart. No. No. No, she wasn't. And now he gets down to 17,000 miles. But I don't know that for a fact. What?
STU: It strikes me that there are several conversations going on in his head. That he thinks he's following. But honestly, they're not audible to others.
GLENN: Yes. So when he said, I don't know that for a fact, that was something that he was thinking, while he was thinking about Niblick. You know what I mean?
STU: Right. Right.
GLENN: Like I don't know that for a fact. It just came out.
STU: Is it possible the Sherpa is talking to him in his mind, and he's responding to a very legitimate -- that could be a very legitimate -- like, that could be a really good answer to what Niblick said.
GLENN: We just don't know. Do we know that for a fact? That might have been it.
STU: Like to him, he can't understand why everyone is criticizing him all the time. Because he's having this whole conversation that makes perfect sense.
GLENN: Yeah. Niblick is like, are you wearing your mountain climbing shoes? I don't know that for a fact. I don't know.
STU: To him, it makes perfect sense.
GLENN: As he's saying, I've got one word to describe America. He's -- Niblick is saying to him, have you ever been to the Himalayas?
STU: Right. Somebody interrupted him with a side conversation, and he was just trying to be polite.
GLENN: I do believe, however, we should have someone qualified, to ask the president, if he is talking to Niblick. Because if he is talking to Niblick, I don't know if Niblick likes buttons. I don't know. I haven't met Niblick.
Okay. I don't know Niblick. He might know him very well, but I don't. I didn't vote for Niblick. And if Niblick is influencing our president, we should all know it, don't you think?
STU: We should all know it. Yes. That is something --
GLENN: I mean, look, I don't want to be a hater. But if the president does have an invisible Sherpa, we should know it.
STU: I'm pretty sure that should be in the Constitution. If it's not, our Founders did not foresee what was going to happen in this country.
GLENN: Right. Twenty-fifth Amendment, Part B. You know what I mean? No Niblicks. No invisible Sherpas.
STU: This Sherpa -- if a president is going to have a Sherpa, it should be invisible to the people.
GLENN: I think so too. And it might be weird. If you're walking around with a Sherpa guy.
STU: That would be weird.
GLENN: But would not be weirder than what we just heard.
STU: I feel like the Constitution handles the Sherpa pretty well. If we could just understand that.
GLENN: Now, if I remember right, they were saying about Donald Trump, when he uses two hands to drink water. He's out of control. He doesn't know what he's doing. Twenty-fifth Amendment. Everybody in the cabinet is freaking out. Well, I think that this president thinks Niblick is in the cabinet, and I mean the kitchen cabinet. We probably should check.
STU: It could be there. Would you be stunned if there was a Sherpa living in one of his cabinets. I wouldn't be stunned by it.
GLENN: I mean this sincerely. Would you be stunned if he's in the middle of a speech, and he looks down to somebody about four feet down who isn't there and says, stop it, Niblick. I'm talking. Would you be surprised?
STU: No. Not at all.
GLENN: That's the problem. It's a problem.
STU: Oh, my God. I wouldn't be surprised at all. I mean, I feel like, if we come on the next day, Joy Reid would be like, if you criticize Niblick.
GLENN: You're anti-Asian! That's what you are.
STU: The white privilege was not having an invisible Sherpa.
(laughter)
That's really what happened.
GLENN: Oh, my gosh. You know it would. You know it would.
STU: That's incredible. You say it. And I really picturing something like that happening. Him just -- it would not be stunning at this point, for him to blurt out something like Niblick.
(laughter)
Niblick, the invisible Sherpa. And it's possible. I think if he did it. Oh, come on. It was a joke. Come on. He was -- he got a little confused. They would justify it. They would legitimately justify it, as if it was no big teal. That the leader of the free world, had an invisible Sherpa living in his cabinet.
GLENN: I think we should get a hold of Niblick, at some point today. I mean, if we can, I don't know.
STU: Yes. He's talking to Biden. I don't see why he wouldn't talk to us.
GLENN: Pick up the phone, Niblick. Why wouldn't we be able to do that?
Holy cow. Really, seriously.
When are we just going to say, okay. When are Democrats going to join the rest of the world? When is someone overseas going to go, come on, America. Come on.
STU: They are already probably doing it. I would assume people like Antony Blinken like, what is happening with you? What is going on? And Blinken is like, oh, no. I see what you're saying. He's fine.
GLENN: You anti-Asian bigot.
STU: I do think that's probably going on already. I can give you a quick preview of this decision. It's not happening until 2022. The election. Until that's over, they will prop him up and fill him with air. And inflate him around like a balloon and walk him around like a Weekend With Bernie's situation, no matter what state he's in.
GLENN: I'm not sure that's true.
STU: It can't.
GLENN: Have you seen the latest from the New York Post today, on Hunter Biden?
STU: Again, they have to get -- they lose the Senate. They lose the Senate, if they -- if they move him out of there right now.
GLENN: They're going to lose the Senate anyway, I think.
STU: I know. But why was it a day earlier than you have to? They're going to lose it anyway. So they're going to maximize this time frame.
There's a moment, where they're really going to do this. It's right -- it's early 2023. Because then you have enough of an off-ramp, to give Kamala I guess a shot to turn it into something.
GLENN: A shot?
STU: What are you going to do? You can't replace her with anybody.
GLENN: Who would you put -- if she became the vice president, who would you put as her vice president? She can't appoint anybody. Seriously, if she appoints somebody with half a brain cell still working, she could appoint Cheech and Chong, and I would still say to her. Hey, don't walk by any open windows, you know what I'm saying? Know who is always behind you in an open window. I mean, who can she appoint, seriously? Because she can't be president.
STU: Why? It's because she -- she has south Asian heritage.
GLENN: And she doesn't have a Sherpa. I want to know who -- that's who we should ask. Who is Biden's Sherpa?
Which Sherpa is actually running the White House?