In reaction to President Joe Biden tripping and falling onstage at the Air Force Academy’s graduation ceremony Thursday, 2024 GOP presidential contender Donald Trump told a crowd of voters in Iowa “I hope he wasn’t hurt”—albeit patronizingly.
“Look, the whole thing is crazy. You gotta be careful about that,” Trump said. “Even if you have to tiptoe down a ramp, you gotta tiptoe.”
The ex-president’s was referring to the time he was forced to slow down to an almost comic degree while exiting the stage during his own commencement appearance at the West Point military academy in 2020.
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During his Iowa address, Trump went on a ramble about that “horrible, cold, and windy” day, where he had to walk on a ramp that was “25 feet long” and “like an ice skating rink.” Although the general he walked with had “big combat boots and their rubber soles,” Trump’s “nice leather” shoes were apparently no match for the ramp.
“I say, ‘You know what, general? If I grab you, you just get ready because I got this stupid ramp somebody put up and there’s no stairs,’” Trump shared. “So I tiptoed down, and I suffered for that.”
Before reeling the crowd back on track for more questions, he gave his final thoughts on Biden’s tumble. “That’s a bad place to fall,” Trump concluded. “That’s not inspiring.”
2024 GOP opponent and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had his own thoughts on Biden’s fall, too. At his campaign stop in New Hampshire, he said, “We hope and wish Joe Biden a swift recovery from any injuries he may have sustained”—but couldn’t help but sneak in a dig at the president as well.
“But we also wish the United States of America a swift recovery from the injuries it has sustained because of Joe Biden and his policies,” DeSantis quipped, before the audience erupted into claps and cheers.
An official for the president confirmed he was doing A-OK after the fall. “He’s fine. There was a sandbag on stage while he was shaking hands,” White House Communications Director Ben LaBolt said in a tweet.
Biden also seemed to keep a positive attitude, even after the public stumble.
“I got sandbagged,” he joked upon his return to the White House Thursday evening.
