Former Vice President Joe Biden is backtracking on remarks he made on a popular black radio program on Friday that were criticized as questioning the cultural authenticity of black supporters of President Trump.
Biden's campaign later said the remarks, called "racist" by the Trump campaign, were made "in jest."
Throughout Friday morning's 18-minute interview, Biden sought to distinguish his record from Trump's and to make the case for why he was the best candidate for black America.
He cited the Trump administration's delayed response to the deadly coronavirus pandemic, which has disproportionately affected African Americans, his own Senate voting record and the overwhelming support he has historically garnered from black voters.
But in his closing remarks to the program, made shortly after he side-stepped speculation of whether he would select a black woman as his running mate in the White House race, Biden took the controversial dig at black Trump supporters, sparking a near-immediate backlash online.
