Social media erupted Monday after President Biden botched a joke that appeared to be targeting young voters due to their unrivaled enthusiasm for the pop music stars referenced.
Biden, who was kicking off his 81st birthday during the annual White House turkey pardoning, appeared to confuse Taylor Swift and Beyonce, while also appearing to incorporate another popular singer into the mix.
“Now just to get here, Liberty and Bell had to beat some tough odds in the competition. They had to work hard, show patience, and be willing to travel over 1,000 miles,” Biden said, before attempting to compare the turkeys traveling to D.C. to getting a ticket to a concert — though it is unclear which hit tour he intended to reference. “You could say even harder than getting a ticket to the Renaissance tour or, or, or Britney’s tour, she’s down, it’s kinda warm in Brazil right now.”
“This is an impeachable offense,” NRCC Communications Director Jack Pandol wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, joking about Biden’s blunder.
“What is Biden talking about?” the Republican National Committee’s research account posted alongside a clip of the remarks.
Biden appeared to either make a comparison to Beyonce’s “Renaissance World Tour” or Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” — as he initially said “Renaissance” but then suddenly began talking about the weather in Brazil where Swift’s latest show was held. The president also mentioned “Britney” in his attempted joke, which some Twitter users have translated as being Britney Spears.
“81-year-old Joe Biden, attempting to not appear ancient, mixes up Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Britney Spears,” OutKick founder Clay Travis posted.
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“Grandpa Joe is trying to be hip and edgy again,” another user wrote.
“Words cannot describe the experience of seeing the leader of the free world ‘pardon’ a large bird,” another user wrote. “Biden tried to make a Taylor Swift joke (something involving how far the turkeys travelled to get to Washington), but badly mangled it, calling her “Britney.”
Other users highlighted the president turning 81.
“Joe Biden has no idea what he’s talking about. He attempts a joke about how difficult it is to get tickets to see Beyonce but calls her ‘Brittany.’ He then follows up that gaffe by confusing Beyonce (‘Brittany’) with Taylor Swift. He turned 81 today,” Citizen Free Press said.
Biden said Monday’s event was the “unofficial start of the holiday season” and was a time to “share joy and gratitude and a little bit of fun.”
“This is the 76th anniversary of this event. And I want you to know, I wasn’t there, the first one,” Biden said, taking a dig at his age. He went on to say that Americans will “gather with the people we love and the traditions that each of us have built up in our own families” this week.
Biden’s comment comes after a NBC News poll found former President Donald Trump was leading Biden in a hypothetical 2024 match-up.
Former Obama adviser David Axelrod warned earlier this month that Biden’s “age issue” was consistent in polling and said that it was the “one thing” the Biden team “can’t reverse.”
“The one number in the polling that was concerning, and in the CNN poll that followed after The New York Times poll, had to do with age, and that is one thing you can’t reverse no matter how effective Joe Biden is behind the scenes,” Axelrod said. “In front of the camera, what he’s projecting is causing people concerns, and that is worrisome.’
