After months of staying out of the public eye, former President Joe Biden has returned to the podium, marking his first major public appearance since leaving office. True to form, Biden arrived over an hour late and stumbled through a rocky start. Predictably, he wasted no time launching attacks on President Donald Trump—while attempting to shore up his own legacy. Biden's remarks seem designed to deflect attention from his own administration's shortcomings and shift focus back to his favorite talking points, like accusing Trump of threatening key programs. While Biden may try to paint himself as the champion of the people, his words ring hollow given the struggles many Americans faced under his policies, including inflation and rising costs.
On Tuesday, Biden addressed the American people in his first major speech since leaving the White House at the Advocates, Counselors, and Representatives for the Disabled (ACRD) conference in Chicago. He criticized the Trump administration’s Social Security policies and referred to black children as “colored kids.”
Within minutes of his speech, Biden said he didn’t have to grow up around black people while growing up in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
“I remember watching a bus go by… it was full of colored kids… I had never seen those,” the 82-year-old said, recalling how his mother would drive him to Catholic school. “I was only going in fourth grade. And I remember seeing kids going by, at the time called ‘colored kids,’ on a bus go by — they never turned right to go to Claymont High School.”
🚨 Joe Biden is spending his first speech since leaving office saying he didn’t have to grow up around black people
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) April 15, 2025
“I remember watching a bus go by… it was full of colored kids… I had never seen those.”
The face of the Democrat party 🤣🤡 pic.twitter.com/4keCWCep8O
He focused his speech on criticizing Trump’s Social Security policies, even though he didn’t mention the former president by name. He described Social Security as more than just a government program, calling it a “sacred” promise to the American people. He also accused Republicans of trying to “cut and gut” the program, which provides essential benefits to retired Americans.
Let me know if you'd like it to sound more neutral, persuasive, or emotionally charged.
However, Biden acknowledged the widespread Social Security fraud discovered by the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“Those 300-year-old folk getting that Social Security, I want to meet them,” Biden said. “I’d like to figure out how they live that long. Hell of a thing, man. I’m looking for longevity.”
The official Social Security X account criticized Biden's claims, releasing a thread stating that the former president "is lying to Americans."
Former President Joe Biden is lying to Americans.
— Social Security (@SocialSecurity) April 15, 2025
Here are the facts:
1️⃣President Trump has repeatedly promised to protect Social Security and ensure higher-take home pay for seniors by ending taxation on Social Security benefits.
Biden also spent a significant portion of his speech speaking over the music, rambling into the microphone.
OMG, Joe Biden's first speech since the election is already a complete disaster, as he starts speaking while the music is still playing. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤡👇 pic.twitter.com/4qPAQHT6F3
— Vince Langman (@LangmanVince) April 15, 2025