Joe Biden incorrectly claimed Wednesday that his late son Beau "lost his life in Iraq." During a speech in Colorado to designate Camp Hale as a national memorial, the president mentioned his son as an example of the sacrifices soldiers have made:
Just imagine — I mean it sincerely — I say this as a father of a man who won the Bronze Star, the conspicuous service medal, and lost his life in Iraq. Imagine the courage, the daring, and the genuine sacrifice — genuine sacrifice they all made.
President @JoeBiden incorrectly said his late son Beau "lost his life in Iraq." https://t.co/oZ9GRyRjcI pic.twitter.com/8OvjbQgUaT
- Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) October 12, 2022
Joe Biden's son, Joseph "Beau" Biden III, did indeed serve in Iraq, but he did not die there. He passed away tragically from brain cancer in 2015 at the age of 46. Beau Biden was a decorated veteran and served two terms as the attorney general of his home state of Delaware.
Biden's troubling lapses
This is not the first time Joe Biden has slipped up on a public stage. In September, during a White House conference, the president sought out Congresswoman Jackie Walorski in the audience. "Jackie, are you here?" Biden asked. The congresswoman had died a month earlier in a traffic accident.
Shortly before, in July, Biden suggested that he himself was suffering from cancer during a speech criticizing oil refineries. The White House had to retract the president's words.
There are numerous gaffes and confusions that have brought into question Biden's (in)ability to lead the country. Some Republican congressmen even called for the president to undergo cognitive testing.
The White House did not comment on Biden's latest lapse. The president will turn 80 years old in November.
