Republican Reps. Elise Stefanik of New York and James Comer of Kentucky sent a letter Wednesday to White House counsel Edward Siskel, demanding "the White House issue a corrected transcript with the accurate words" of the call in which President Joe Biden referred to supporters of former President Donald Trump as "garbage."
On Tuesday, video surfaced of Biden saying to a group of supporters, "Donald Trump has no character. He doesn't give a damn about the Latino community.
"Just the other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage. The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters."
The controversy grew on Friday when The Associated Press obtained an internal email showing that White House press officials altered the official transcript of the call.
"Americans were rightfully insulted when President Biden, seeking to boost Ms. [Kamala] Harris's presidential campaign, referred to an enormous swath of the country as 'floating . . . garbage.' President Biden's vindictive words were unsurprising, given his previous statements regarding people who choose not to vote for his preferred candidate," the letter read.
Stefanik, who chairs the House Republican Conference, and Comer, who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, wrote that the Biden White House may be in violation of the Presidential Records Act of 1978.
"White House staff cannot rewrite the words of the President of the United States to be more politically on message. ... We write to demand the White House retain and preserve all documents and internal communications regarding President Biden's statement and the release of the inaccurate transcript. We also demand that the White House issue a corrected transcript with the accurate words," the letter read.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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