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A video of Maui residents chanting "Fk Joe Biden" during his visit to the island was circulated across social media on August 23, 2023. The clip shows Biden walking hand-in-hand with First Lady Jill Biden and accompanied by Josh Green, the Governor of Hawaii, and his wife, Jaime Green, in the town of Lahaina.
Eternal Optimist, an account on X, shared the video and claimed that Joe landed in Hawaii and the entire population was yelling the expletive at the president. However, a community note was added to the post where it was stated that the chanting was added to the video as an edit. The note also provided a YouTube link to the original video, which did not include such chants. Thus, the viral video of Joe Biden circulating on social media is an edited one.
The unaltered video was captured on August 21, authentically showing the President and the First Lady visiting the town of Lahaina to witness the devastation of the wildfire firsthand.
The duo then walked towards a mic stand, and Joe said that they were standing next to the burnt remains of the 150-year-old banyan tree. He then addressed the people of Maui, saying:
“The country grieves with you, stands with you and will do everything possible to help you recover.”
X users reacted to the altered video of Joe Biden's Maui visit, criticizing the US president
Even though the community note added to the post clarified for everyone that nobody actually chanted the expletive at the president, people ridiculed Joe's attitude towards the situation in Maui altogether. Some noted how he appeared sleepy and couldn't pronounce Lahaina's Mayor's name properly.
Joe Biden visited Maui after days of being criticized
The U.S. President visited the town of Lahaina 13 days after a wildfire hit Maui that claimed nearly 114 lives and ravaged the historic town.
Joe Biden toured the damaged site with his wife and promised the Maui residents that the federal government would help the island for as long as it would take to recover from the wreckage. He also delivered his speech and mentioned how the survival of the oldest banyan tree of Lahaina could be "a very powerful symbol."
"I believe it's a very powerful symbol of what we can and will do to get through this crisis."
However, Biden’s visit was met with some protests from locals. One of the protesters held out a banner that urged the president to send relief for Maui as Joe Biden’s motorcade passed by the streets of Lahaina. Another banner asked Joe to listen to the people of Maui.
Former President Donald Trump also criticized Joe Biden and said that it was “disgraceful” of his successor to not respond to the crisis more quickly. But the White House pushed back against all the criticism and claimed that Joe was in touch with the Hawaiian Governor as well as other emergency officials in Maui throughout this post-wildfire crisis.
During the visit, Joe and Jill Biden met with first responders and were briefed by local and state officials about the current response on the island. The president told the people of Maui that his administration was going to rebuild the island the way the residents would want. He also added that the sacred lands, traditions, and cultures of the island would be respected by his officials.
