Biden Says Putin 'Cannot Remain in Power,' White House Walks Back Comment
Summary from the AllSides News Team
While speaking to a crowd in front of Warsaw's Royal Castle in Poland on Saturday, President Joe Biden closed his speech with a bold and seemingly unscripted remark that sparked a quick rebuttal from the White House.
"For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power," Biden said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Biden's comment was widely interpreted as a call for regime change in Russia, but a White House official swiftly clarified after the president's speech that this was not the case. "The president’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region," the official told reporters.
Most reports from across the spectrum emphasized that this was the second time the White House has had to "clean up" the president's remarks during his four-day trip to Europe. While speaking to U.S. troops in Poland on Friday, Biden implied that they might be getting deployed to Ukraine when saying "you're gonna see when you're there."
The Washington Post (Lean Left bias) emphasized how some officials said Biden's comment regarding Putin "was an honest acknowledgment of reality" and predicted that his words "almost certainly will be used as part of Russia’s propaganda." Fox News (Right bias) interviewed Russia "expert" and former Defense Intelligence Agency officer Rebekah Koffler, who believes that "Putin heard loud and clear a call for regime change."
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The White House walked back President Joe Biden's remark on Saturday that Russian President Vladimir Putin "cannot remain in power" amid his invasion of Ukraine.
The remark closed a speech Biden gave in Warsaw, Poland, where he spoke to about 1,000 people—including Ukrainian refugees—about the conflict, defending democracy and further condemning Putin.
"We will have a different future—a brighter future rooted in democracy and principle; hope and light, decency and dignity; of freedom of possibilities," Biden said. "For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power."
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