“For the first time since 9/11, an American President is visiting this region without American troops engaged in combat — in a combat mission in the region,” Biden said during a speech to Gulf Cooperation Council leaders in Jeddah. Saudi Arabia. “We will always honor the bravery and the selflessness — the selflessness of — and the sacrifices of the Americans who served, including my son, Major Beau Biden, who was in Iraq for a year,” he said. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken blinked loudly and shifted uncomfortably in his seat as his boss made the unfortunate verbal slip, which the White House later noted in its official minutes. Joe Biden cited the “selfishness” of US troops in his latest blunder abroad. BANDAR ALJALOUD HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Biden said he is the first US president to visit the Middle East since 9/11 without US troops involved in combat.Getty Images Biden’s blunder is the latest in a string of speech gaffes. Getty Images The awkward comment came two days after Biden shocked listeners in Israel by speaking about “Holocaust honor” during an official visit. He corrected himself on that occasion as well, quickly saying “horrors of the Holocaust,” as the line was written. It was the latest in a long list of ill-conceived and misguided statements by the 79-year-old president, who in recent days has misspoken about the 1918 mass shooting at Parkland High School and glossed over an apparent stage direction — “repeat the line” — in a telemarketer gaffe straight from the Will Ferrell comedy “Anchorman.”
