Joe Biden ended a speech in Connecticut at the National Safer Communities Summit at the University of Hartford on Friday by remarking, "God save the Queen, man," to the audience. The comment comes months after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, who passed at the age of 96, last September.
When asked for context to the quote, White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Olivia Alair Dalton told CT Insider that Biden was speaking directly to someone in the audience. "He couldn’t do the full rope line due to weather, and was commenting to someone in the crowd," Dalton wrote in an email.
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Biden previously reflected on Queen Elizabeth II's passing in a White House statement, last year. "Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was more than a monarch. She defined an era," Biden wrote at the time. "We first met the queen in 1982, traveling to the UK as part of a Senate delegation. And we were honored that she extended her hospitality to us in June 2021 during our first overseas trip as President and First Lady, where she charmed us with her wit, moved us with her kindness and generously shared with us her wisdom."
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Elsewhere in Biden's speech, he called for several gun control measures including universal background checks and banning AR-15s. "A lot of you are tired. You're tired. No, I get it. Try being 110 and doing it again," Biden said. "Whether your Democrat or Republic we all want families to be safe. We all want to drop them off at a house of worship, a mall, a movie, a school door without worrying that's the last time we're ever see them." The speech comes as Biden continues to prepare for the upcoming 2024 Presidential Election.
[Via]