Boasting a fictitious endorsement was among Joe Biden’s most recent gaffes of the day.
During last week’s dueling town hall events, Biden claimed to have the support of the Boilmakers union. That came after host George Stephanopoulos brought up Biden’s new claim that he doesn’t want to ban fracking, while quoting a Boilermakers Local 154 member who told the New York Times that this is inconsistent with Biden’s goal of ending use of fossil fuels. Biden responded “The Boilermakers overwhelmingly endorse me, OK?. So the Boilermakers union has endorsed me because I sat down with them, went into great detail with leadership, exactly what I would do, No. 1.”
Perhaps Biden sat down when them, and perhaps he went into great detail with the union’s leadership. But they did not endorse him.
Sadly with Biden it’s impossible to know if he was simply lying, or misremembering. Regardless, the union is pushing back on Biden’s easily debunked claim.
According to the Washington Examiner:
“The other day, I’m watching the debate, and I see Joe Biden tell everybody that the Boilermakers endorsed him, and that is not true,” Boilermakers Local 154 union leader John Hughes said this weekend, according to Breitbart News. “And I would like somebody to tell me who — he said he talked to somebody — I’d like to know who he talked to in the Boilermakers because anybody I talk to did not endorse him.”
“And I believe if you go onto our International [Boilermakers] website, we have not endorsed a candidate this round, nor did the International Boilermakers endorse a candidate last time,” Hughes added. “We did not endorse Obama and Joe Biden last time because of their energy issues.”
While the national union didn’t make an endorsement, Hughes and Local 154, the largest branch within the union, did endorse President Trump in September. “It is with great honor that I write this letter to endorse your campaign as you run for re-election of the President of the United States. I am happy to support your administration as you have proven to be a true friend of the Boilermakers, and I wish you the best of luck in your campaign” Hughes wrote.
