What Biden meant to say in his bungled debate closing statement

Former Vice President Joe Biden’s closing statement at CNN’s Democratic debate Wednesday night was ... a bit of a mess.

First, he explained to the audience that while “four more years of Donald Trump” would “go down as an aberration,” “eight more years of Donald Trump” would “change America in a fundamental way.”

What Biden meant to say, of course, was that the four years of Trump’s first term would go down as an aberration and that he shouldn’t win reelection. But he accidentally added the word “more” both times. So it sounded as if he was saying another Trump term wouldn’t matter much, it’s the third term that we should worry about.

Then, Biden closed out by telling the audience to “Go to Joe 3-0-3-3-0 and help me in this fight.” It was not clear how you could “go” to Joe 30330 — was it a website, or what? The answer is that you can text the number 30330 to get involved in the Biden campaign. The former vice president remembered the number but didn’t properly explain how to use it.

It was a line that inspired an avalanche of internet jokes and a race to snatch up the website domain name.

Biden has long been known for his unguarded way of speaking: He goes off-script, he embarks on lengthy riffs, and he sometimes says things he ends up regretting (like when he reminisced about working with segregationist senators at a recent fundraiser).

So while these verbal slip-ups are more amusing than they are important, they do point to a larger concern some Democrats have with Biden as a candidate. And of course, any contender would obviously prefer not to make mistakes in a closing debate statement.

Here’s Biden’s full closing remarks, gaffes and all:

Thank you. Thank you, Detroit for hosting this. Look, I’ve said it many times, and I think everyone agrees with this: We’re in a battle for the soul of America. This most consequential election any one of you, no matter how old or young you are, has ever, ever participated in. Four more years of Donald Trump will go down as an aberration. Hard to overcome the damage he’s done, but we can overcome it. Eight more years of Donald Trump will change America in a fundamental way. The America we know will no longer exist.

Everybody knows who Donald Trump is. We have to let him know who we are. We choose science over fiction. We choose hope over fear. We choose unity over division. And we choose the idea that we can, as Americans. when we act together, do anything.

This is the United States of America. We’ve acted together — we have never, never, never been unable to overcome whatever the problem was. If you agree with me, go to Joe 30330 and help me in this fight. Thank you very much.

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