Overview
- At Syracuse University’s law school portrait unveiling Tuesday, Joe Biden pointed to trustee Jeffrey M. Scruggs, called him “Barack,” and urged him to the podium.
- Video of the exchange spread quickly on social platforms, with conservative commentators calling it awkward or racially insensitive and others saying it was clearly a joke.
- Scruggs, the chair of Syracuse’s Board of Trustees, laughed, walked to the lectern for a brief exchange, and then returned to his seat.
- Biden’s prepared remarks focused on how Syracuse shaped his career and on his goal to pass a reverence for democracy to future generations through his library and foundation.
- The Daily Mail, citing unnamed sources, reported Scruggs had prompted the comparison for his daughter, a claim other outlets have not broadly corroborated.