The White House altered the transcript of President Joe Biden’s “garbage” comment despite concerns from stenographers.
Fox News obtained an email from a supervisor of the White House’s press office, who said the matter was a “breach of protocol and spoilation of transcript integrity between the Stenography and Press Offices.”
“If there is a difference in interpretation, the Press Office may choose to withhold the transcript but cannot edit it independently,” the supervisor wrote. “Our Stenography Office transcript — released to our distro, which includes the National Archives — is now different than the version edited and released to the public by Press Office staff.”
Director of White House Stenography Amy Sands criticized the White House’s alteration of the comment, writing in an email, “After last night’s process, our team would like to reiterate that rush drafts/excerpts the Stenography Office sends to assist the Press Office are not intended for public distribution or as the final version of the transcript.” She added, “Please avoid sharing rush drafts/excerpts, which are subject to review and might create confusion among staff, media, and the public while our Stenography Office completes a thorough review process.”
The situation surrounds Biden saying, “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable and it is un-American.”
While the stenographers originally wrote “supporters,” the transcript released by the White House read “supporter’s,” changing the meaning of Biden’s statement. The alteration suggests Biden was criticizing comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, not Trump supporters.
According to the Associated Press, the change was made after the press office “conferred with the president.”
GOP lawmakers have raised concerns over the matter.
House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) sent a letter to White House Counsel Edward Siskel, demanding that all records pertaining to the transcript be preserved.
“Instead of apologizing or clarifying President Biden’s words, the White House instead sought to change them (despite them being recorded on video) by releasing a false transcript of his remarks,” the letter says. “The move is not only craven, but it also appears to be in violation of federal law, including 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. Though President Biden’s relevance continues to diminish, his words continue to matter, even as they become increasingly divisive and erratic,” the Republicans added. “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.”
