CONCORD, NH – With two weeks left until Election Day, President Biden appeared to spark a political controversy Tuesday when he called for his predecessor to be “politically” locked down during a political event in New Hampshire’s capital.
The president was in Concord for an official event to highlight his administration’s efforts to reduce health care costs and prescription drug prices. Minutes later, speaking at a political rally at the New Hampshire Democratic Party headquarters, Biden reiterated his old argument that former President Trump, the Republican candidate, if re-elected, would be a threat to the nation’s democracy.
“Our democracy is at stake,” he said. “Think about it. Think about what would happen if Donald Trump won this election.”
Biden then said, “I know this sounds strange. It seems like if I said this five years ago, they would lock me up. We have to lock him up.”
But the president seemed to recover instantly, adding: “Lock him up politically. Leave him out. That’s what we have to do.”
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President Biden speaks at the New Hampshire Democratic Party headquarters in Concord, NH, on October 22, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
During his tenure in the White House, Biden has tried to keep his distance from the Justice Department and its multiple investigations into the former president. And Biden has repeatedly insisted that his administration has not let political motivations influence its decisions regarding those investigations into Trump.
But Biden’s Tuesday comments, though quickly corrected, come as Vice President Kamala Harris, who three months ago replaced Biden at the top of the 2024 Democratic ticket, has tried to stop supporters at her rallies from chanting ” Lock him up.” in reference to Trump.
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“Lock her up” was a common chant from Trump supporters during the former president’s 2016 campaign, as he criticized Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for being corrupt.
And as he races to retake the White House, Trump has repeatedly accused — without providing evidence — that the Justice Department’s investigations against him are politically motivated.
Former President Donald Trump, Republican presidential candidate, speaks at a campaign rally Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
On Tuesday, the Trump campaign quickly posted a video of Biden’s comments to its social media accounts.
And the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said in a statement that “Joe Biden just admitted the truth: He and Kamala have always planned to politically go after their opponent, President Trump, because they can’t beat him outright.” “The Biden administration is the real threat to democracy. We call on Kamala Harris to condemn Joe Biden’s disgraceful comment.”
There was no official reaction from the White House, but aides noted the context, which the president quickly corrected himself as he spoke and added “lock him up politically.”
Fox News reached out to Harris’ campaign for reaction but had not yet received a response at the time this story was published.
Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign event at Riverside Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Trump, who has been impeached multiple times and made history as the first current or former president convicted in a criminal case, has regularly said during the 2024 campaign that if he returned to the White House, he would prosecute his political enemies.
And both Biden and Harris have repeatedly warned voters that Trump poses a threat to democracy if he is re-elected.
“There are only two things we can do. Make sure he doesn’t do it. Or, if he does, make sure we have the strongest Democratic majority we can get,” the president argued.
Bidn also repeated his accusations that Republicans who support Trump have undemocratic attitudes.
“Now we are faced with a totally different breed of cat,” he said. “That was… the civil rights era was terrible. But now we have a group that is literally, and I’m not one that’s prone to hyperbole, but we have a group that leads MAGA Republicans who have a stance anti. “democratic attitude towards the operation of the Constitution,” Biden reiterated on Tuesday.
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But Trump supporters have blamed the rhetoric of some Democrats for the two failed assassination attempts this year on the former president.
President Biden highlights his administration’s efforts to reduce health care costs at an official political event in Concord, New Hampshire, on October 22, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Biden also criticized Trump at the official political event, which was held at a nearby community college.
“My predecessor, the distinguished former president,” Biden said mockingly of Trump, “wants to replace the Affordable Care Act with…what he calls a concept plan.”
The president then accused Trump of having “no concept of anything.”
President Joe Biden with Sen. Bernie, D-Vt., after Biden delivered remarks on lowering the cost of prescription drugs, at NHTI Concord Community College, Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024, in Concord, NH. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Sen. Bernie Sanders of neighboring Vermont, a progressive champion and two-time runner-up for the Democratic presidential nomination, spoke before Biden at the event.
The president later joked that “Bernie and I… have been doing this job for a long time. I know we both look like we’re in our 40s, but we’re a little older. At least I am.”
Fox News’ Pat Ward and Camille Moore contributed to this report.
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