Biden’s First Major Post-Presidency Speech Turns Bizarre with Outdated Remarks and Shouting Outbursts
CHICAGO — April 15, 2025
In his first major public address since leaving the White House, former President Joe Biden emerged from relative obscurity Tuesday night to speak before the national conference of Advocates, Counselors and Representatives for the Disabled (ACRD) in Chicago. The event was billed as a discussion on dignity, disability rights, and Social Security—yet what unfolded left many observers puzzled.
Biden Struggles Through Remarks
The 82-year-old former president, who has made few public appearances since President Trump took office in January, gave a meandering and at times incoherent speech that quickly veered off-script.
Biden began by recounting a childhood memory:
“And I’d never seen—uh, I’d never seen hardly any Black people in Scranton at the time and I was only going on 4th grade. And I remember seeing the kids going by—at the time, called colored kids—on a bus going by.”
The outdated terminology drew immediate criticism on social media, with many calling the remark racially insensitive and historically dubious.
Biden claimed the moment “sparked his outrage as a kid,” though fact-checkers have previously debunked similar origin stories Biden has told throughout his political career.
Shouting and Outbursts
Midway through his speech, Biden abruptly began shouting at the crowd about dignity and Social Security:
“It’s about dignity. Simple dignity! Everyone! Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity… regardless of who they are!” he yelled, banging the podium for emphasis.
Observers noted that the outburst came seemingly without provocation or transition from his prior remarks, sparking concern about the former president’s emotional stability and cognitive sharpness.
Criticism of Trump and DOGE
Biden also used the speech to take aim at the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for their recent crackdown on waste, fraud, and abuse in federal programs—including cuts to bloated spending within Social Security and Medicaid.
“They’re gutting the programs people rely on… and they’re doing it in the name of something they call ‘efficiency,’” Biden said, shaking his head.
Critics argue the DOGE reforms have already saved taxpayers billions, cutting bloated contracts and eliminating improper benefit payments, particularly to noncitizens and deceased individuals.
Public Reaction Mixed
The Post Millennial captured one of the most jarring moments from the speech in a now-viral clip:
“President Biden randomly starts screaming in his first speech since leaving office. He tells a story about seeing Black kids on buses:
‘I remember watching a bus go by. It was full of colored kids…I had never seen those.’”
Watch Here
Social media reactions ranged from confusion to concern, with some commentators suggesting the event revealed why Biden has largely remained out of the spotlight since leaving office.
Final Thoughts
Biden’s return to the public stage was clearly meant to rally Democrats around entitlement protections—but instead, it raised more questions than answers about the party’s post-Trump messaging and Biden’s political future.
With Democrats still fractured over leadership, Biden’s performance may reinforce the growing sentiment on both sides of the aisle: it’s time for new voices to lead the national conversation.
