HYGO News Biden $700 Per Maui Household, Blow His Nose & Stumbles Through Again Asks For Directions
Biden Offers $700 Per Maui Household, Blows Nose Mid-Speech, Asks for Directions Off Stage
On August 15, 2023, President Joe Biden traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to tour Ingeteam, Inc. and promote clean energy investments under the Inflation Reduction Act. The event became a wide-ranging compilation of notable moments: Biden announced a one-time payment of $700 per household for Maui wildfire victims after days of refusing to comment on the disaster, attempted to insult Texas Governor Greg Abbott while praising the state’s wind and solar facilities, pulled out a large wad of tissues to blow his nose mid-speech before resuming shouting, asked for directions to get off stage, introduced Senator Tammy Baldwin by saying “if I had another ten of you, we could rule the world,” claimed “Bidenomics is working” while prices remained elevated and real wages were down, retold his frequently debunked Amtrak mileage story, and said he had “been to too many disaster areas” despite never having visited East Palestine, Ohio, after its train derailment.
$700 Per Household for Maui Wildfire Victims
After several days of silence on the devastating Maui wildfires that killed over 100 people and destroyed the historic town of Lahaina, Biden used the Milwaukee event to announce that he and First Lady Jill Biden would travel to Hawaii “as soon as we can.”
Biden explained the delay: “That’s what I’ve been talking to the governor about. I don’t want to get in the way. I’ve been to too many disaster areas, but I want to go make sure we got everything they need.”
The $700-per-household figure drew immediate criticism. The Maui fires had been the deadliest wildfire disaster in modern U.S. history, with entire neighborhoods reduced to ash and thousands of residents left homeless. Critics contrasted the $700 one-time payment with the billions the administration had directed to Ukraine and other foreign aid recipients. The amount was also compared unfavorably to the scale of destruction, with many residents having lost everything they owned.
Biden’s claim that he had “been to too many disaster areas” was also scrutinized. While he had visited tornado-damaged communities and hurricane-affected regions, he had never traveled to East Palestine, Ohio, after a Norfolk Southern train derailment in February 2023 released toxic chemicals and forced evacuations. The omission had been a persistent political vulnerability throughout the year.
Biden Stumbles Over Greg Abbott Insult
During his remarks, Biden attempted to mock Texas Governor Greg Abbott on energy policy but inadvertently complimented the state he was trying to criticize: “Texas, the state of Texas, is a very enlightened governor. The very state of Texas has the highest number of wind and solar facilities, I think, of any state in the nation. And it’s cheaper than fossil fuel. He wants to shut them down. Isn’t that enlightened?”
The sarcasm was undermined by Biden’s confused syntax. He opened by calling Texas “a very enlightened governor” — merging the state and the governor into a single entity. He then cited Texas’s leading position in wind and solar energy, a fact that actually reflected well on the state’s energy policies under Republican governance. The attempt at irony fell flat because the underlying point — that Texas had built extensive renewable energy infrastructure — was a data point that could be read as either a success of market-driven energy policy or a vindication of renewable investment.
Bidenomics “Is Working” Amid Rising Prices
Biden made one of his most forceful pitches for his economic record during the speech, invoking the “Bidenomics” label that he had recently embraced: “The Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, started calling my plan, not initially as a compliment, Bidenomics. But guess what, folks? They’re talking about it differently now. It’s working. It’s working. I’m serious.”
He continued: “In case you haven’t noticed, inflation is down, too, and it’s going lower.”
The claims were accurate in a narrow sense — the rate of inflation had declined from its peak of over 9 percent in June 2022 — but prices themselves remained significantly higher than when Biden took office. Real wages, adjusted for inflation, were still down compared to pre-pandemic levels for many workers. Consumer sentiment surveys consistently showed that Americans felt worse off economically, creating a persistent gap between the administration’s positive messaging and voters’ lived experience.
Biden also touted private investment: “I think it’s worth more than one half trillion dollars. Let me say it again, one half trillion dollars in private investment in American manufacturing.”
The Amtrak Story — Again
Biden repeated one of his most frequently told — and most frequently questioned — personal stories about his train travel. The story involved an Amtrak employee named “Angie” who allegedly confronted Biden about his travel mileage.
Biden recounted: “I’m getting on the train one day. Secret Service are the best in the world. They don’t like me traveling on the train because there are too many opportunities for people to do bad things on trains.”
He continued with the punchline: “And this guy, I won’t mention his name because I’ll get him in trouble. But one of the senior guys in Amtrak, who I rode with the whole time, comes up and goes, ‘Joey, baby!’ Grabs my cheek. I swear to God, I thought you were going to shoot him.”
Biden then delivered the central claim: “He said, ‘We just had a retirement dinner up in Newark.’ He said, ‘You travel average 117 days a year, round trip, 300 miles a day. 36 years, that’s 1,285,000 miles.’ I don’t want to hear any more about the Air Force.”
Fact-checkers had repeatedly noted problems with this story. The Amtrak employee Biden typically references, Angelo Negri, retired in 1993 and passed away in 2014. The timeline Biden describes — traveling over a million miles during his time as Vice President — does not align with Negri’s retirement date, which occurred before Biden became Vice President. Biden acknowledged mid-story that he was “getting off point here.”
Tammy Baldwin Introduction and Stage Directions
Biden introduced Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin with characteristic hyperbole: “Tammy Baldwin, you’re the best kid. You’re the absolute best. If I had another ten of you, we could rule the world.”
The “rule the world” comment drew chuckles but also commentary about Biden’s tendency toward grandiose phrasing during introductions of allies.
The event concluded with another instance of Biden needing assistance navigating the stage. After delivering his closing — “May God bless you all, and may God protect our troops” — Biden appeared to need directions for his exit, a pattern that had been observed at numerous public events throughout his presidency.
Key Takeaways
- Biden announced a one-time payment of $700 per household for Maui wildfire victims during an August 15, 2023 speech in Milwaukee, drawing criticism for the modest amount relative to the scale of the disaster.
- Biden claimed he had “been to too many disaster areas” while explaining his delayed Hawaii visit, despite never having visited East Palestine, Ohio, after the February 2023 train derailment.
- Biden attempted to mock Texas Governor Abbott on energy policy but confused his syntax, calling Texas “a very enlightened governor” and citing the state’s leading position in wind and solar as evidence against Abbott.
- Biden declared “Bidenomics is working. I’m serious” and claimed inflation was “going lower,” while real wages remained down and consumer sentiment surveys showed widespread economic dissatisfaction.
- Biden retold his debunked Amtrak mileage story featuring an employee who retired in 1993 and passed away in 2014, acknowledging mid-story that he was “getting off point here.”
Full Transcript
The following is transcribed from the video audio:
Texas, the state of Texas, is a very enlightened governor. The very state of Texas has the highest number of wind and solar facilities, I think, of any state in the nation. And it’s cheaper than fossil fuel. He wants to shut them down. Isn’t that enlightened?
I think it’s worth more than one half trillion dollars. Let me say it again, one half trillion dollars in private investment in American manufacturing.
May God bless you all, and may God protect our troops. Thank you.
Tammy Baldwin, you’re the best kid. You’re the absolute best. If I had another ten of you, we could rule the world.
My wife, Jill, and I are going to travel to Hawaii as soon as we can. That’s what I’ve been talking to the governor about. I don’t want to get in the way. I’ve been to too many disaster areas, but I want to go make sure we got everything they need.
The Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, started calling my plan, not initially as a compliment, the Bidenomics. But guess what, folks? They’re talking about it differently now. It’s working. It’s working. I’m serious. In case you haven’t noticed, inflation is down, too, and it’s going lower.
You can see how Ron Johnson’s rationalum mega-rackin’-out worked out.
My wife called me one day, she says, did you read the paper today? And I was up campaigning for a guy named Pat Leahy in Vermont. I said, no, honey, I didn’t see the Wilmington paper. I said, headline, above the fold, only a politician’s wife would say that. Biden, poorest man in Congress, is that true? Like I was cheating on her or something. But I was. And I couldn’t afford a house in Washington, and I couldn’t afford a house in Delaware. If I sold my house in Delaware, I’d lose the election. So I started a commute. It’s only 300 miles a day. But it still takes me an average of four hours, beginning to end.
And so what happened was, when you travel as vice president on Air Force planes, they keep a precise number of miles to travel. And I guess it was in my seventh year, sixth year as vice president, there was a headline in the New York paper saying, Biden travels almost 1,200,000 miles on Air Force planes, 1,200,000 river.
I’m getting on the train one day. Secret service are the best in the world. They don’t like me traveling on the train because there are too many opportunities for people to do bad things on trains. And so I’m getting on a train to go home and see my mom, who is sick and hospice at my home. And this guy, I won’t mention his name because I get him in trouble. But one of the senior guys in Amtrak, who I rode with the whole time, comes up and goes, Joey, baby, grabs my cheek. I swear to God, I thought you were going to shoot him. And I said, no, no, no, no, no. I said, what’s the matter, Angie? He said, we just, I read this thing about a million, over a million miles on Air Force planes. He said, hell, you know how many miles you travel on Amtrak? I said, no, Angie, I don’t know. He said, we just had a retirement dinner up in Newark. He said, you travel average 117 days a year, round trip, 300 miles a day. 36 years, that’s 1,285,000 miles. I don’t want to hear any more about the Air Force. True story. I swear to God, I’m getting off point here.