President Biden sparked a flurry of fact-checking from social media users when he claimed to have frequently commuted over Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge by train.
The bridge, which collapsed Tuesday when it was struck by a container ship, didn’t have any rail lines.
“At about 1:30 [a.m.], a container ship struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which I’ve been over many, many times commuting from the state of Delaware either on a train or by car,” Mr. Biden said in his first public remarks on the catastrophe.
“I’ve been to Baltimore Harbor many times,” he added. “And the bridge collapsed, sending several people and vehicles into the water — into the river.”
The president’s claim was quickly scrutinized and debunked by online commentators, as the bridge only carried vehicular traffic.
“So many lies! He lies just to lie,” one X user said. “There is no value to him inserting himself into this situation.”
“Ummm…what train tracks is he referencing? Because there are none on the Francis Scott Key bridge,” radio talk show host Alan Sanders tweeted.
“Oops here goes Joe AGAIN,” another person on the social media platform tweeted.
“Just another example of his mental derailment,” conservative podcast host Chad Prather tweeted.
The White House told The New York Post that Mr. Biden was making reference only to having driven over the bridge.
“The president was clearly describing driving over the bridge while commuting between Delaware and D.C. during his 36-year Senate career,” White House spokesperson Robyn Patterson said in a statement.
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