Biden Loves to Tell Tall Tales. We Cut Them Down to Size.
The New York Times
By President Biden’s account, he was a fierce civil rights activist in his youth, had an uncle who fell prey to cannibals and used to drive an 18-wheeler.
In President Biden’s telling, he was a teenage civil rights activist, a former trucker, the first in his family to go college and the nephew of a cannibalism victim.
All of these claims stretch the truth or are downright false. But Mr. Biden persists in telling personal tales with rhetorical flourishes and factual liberty when he works a room or regales an audience. They are a way to connect with voters, emphasize his “middle-class Joe” persona and charm his audience.
Despite Mr. Biden’s penchant for exaggerating details when recounting episodes from his life, these autobiographical embellishments differ in scale and significance from the stream of lies about a stolen election peddled by his opponent, former President Donald J. Trump.
A White House spokesman, Andrew Bates, said that Mr. Biden had “brought honesty and integrity back to the White House” and that he shared life experiences that had shaped his outlook.
Here are some of the president’s most repeated yarns.
“In our last debate, when I was 29 years old, the first question he was asked at the debate was, ‘Do you have any regrets, Senator Boggs?’ And he said, ‘No.’ Then we came to the very end of the debate, where I spoke and then he was to conclude. He stood up, and he said, ‘You know, I was asked if I had any regrets. I said no, but I have one: Had Joe Biden gone to the Naval Academy when I appointed him, he’d still have seven months left on and wouldn’t be able to run.’”— in a May commencement speech at West Point Military Academy
President-elect Donald J. Trump’s pick to lead the Defense Department was described by peers as a skillful soldier who became embittered by military dysfunction.
The disgraced New York politician is considering a run for City Council. But even in an era of political comebacks, this might be pushing it.
Conservatives in Florida have moved from explosive politics to subtler tactics to uproot liberal “indoctrination” in higher education by removing classes like Sociology from core requirements.
A document prepared by federal investigators bolsters claims by women who say they were hired for sex by Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice for attorney general, who denies wrongdoing.
Joanna Smith-Griffin was charged with lying to investors about revenue and her customer base, which she claimed included some of the nation’s largest school districts, including New York City’s.
Ms. Tisch, a member of a prominent New York family who has held several positions in city government, will take over the nation’s largest police department.
The verdict followed a four-day bench trial in which prosecutors detailed a violent attack that became a flashpoint in the bitter national debate over immigration policy.
Now that New York City and surrounding counties are under a drought warning, officials are asking residents to save water and help prevent more wildfires.
The return to power of President-elect Donald J. Trump, who has vowed to confront China on tariffs, has created deep uncertainty about the U.S. role in avoiding global conflicts.
G.O.P. lawmakers whose leaders have pressed to roll back transgender rights around the country moved to bar Sarah McBride, the first transgender member of Congress, from women’s rooms on Capitol Hill.
The billionaire has rapidly transformed parts of the state, shocking even development-friendly officials: “It was like, ‘Voilà, Elon is here.’”