Did Joe Biden just tell a NATO general he was sleeping with his wife?
Conservatives are spreading the claim that President Joe Biden admitted to sleeping with another man's wife during his speech at NATO’s 75th anniversary summit on Tuesday.
In clips circulating on social media, Biden is alleged to have made the remark while referencing NATO's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. But he seems more likely to have said something else.
Specifically, Biden is accused of saying that he was "fucking your wife" as Stoltenberg can be seen smiling just feet away on stage.
The footage, multiple versions of which were shared from sources such as Fox News and the White House, soon went viral and racked up millions of views.
Most conservatives spreading the claim responded with astonishment, arguing that Biden had eclipsed his previous missteps while speaking publicly.
"I recorded this myself by rewinding the live coverage. It is not edited," one user said. "That is the gaffe to beat all gaffes!!! Right as he’s giving him the Presidential Medal of Freedom too."
At the event, Biden surprised the general in another way, awarding him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Russian propagandist accounts on X, such as @RUnews, also helped the claim reach countless users.
"Biden can’t speak anymore.. mumbles something* then suddenly it‘s fucking your wife," the account wrote. "mumbles again and laughs.."
Many aimed to prove that the video hadn't been edited by linking to versions of the clip hosted by media outlets.
"That clip of Biden saying 'I realize...I was fuckin your wife... I personally ask you to extend your service... forgive me' is in fact real," another X subscriber wrote. "Unless Fox News edited the video themselves."
Although it is true that the clip was not edited, Biden did not claim to have slept with Stoltenberg's wife.
What does the Biden NATO wife clip say?
Biden instead says: "Mr. Secretary, you’ve guided this alliance through one of the most consequential periods in its history. I realize I—as I was talking to your wife—I personally asked you to extend your service. Forgive me."
In other words, Biden was apologizing for asking Stoltenberg to remain at NATO, something he seems to have been reminded of in talking to Stoltenberg's wife, perhaps before the event. A transcript of Biden's remark is openly available from the White House.
At least a few accounts on X, which has yet to add a Community Note to the false tweets, attempted to correct the record.
Biden's trouble enunciating and speaking loudly has long been an issue, but it appears to have gotten so bad that at least one reporter said they've begun using translation headsets during overseas trips to increase the volume of Biden's voice.
And while criticisms of Biden's current cognitive abilities are valid, many, especially those on the right, continue to latch onto false claims regarding the president. Earlier this week, thousands of TikTokers claimed that the White House had used artificial intelligence to produce a fake Biden phone interview.
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