Biden Says Putin “Cannot Remain in Power” Then White House Walks It Back; NBC Poll Shows 40% Approval — “His Worst Showing Yet”

On 3/27/2022, Biden declared of Putin “this man cannot remain in power” during a speech in Warsaw — then the White House immediately walked it back. Foreign policy experts called it “an unforced error” that “strengthens Putin at home.” An NBC News poll showed Biden at 40% approval — “his worst showing yet” — with 71% of Americans saying they lacked confidence in Biden’s ability to respond to the war. Analysts noted the Europe trip had produced three major gaffes that were “at cross purposes with the overall message."

"This Man Cannot Remain in Power”

Biden closed his Warsaw speech with an unscripted line that sent shockwaves. “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power,” Biden said of Putin.

The White House immediately walked it back. A foreign policy expert assessed the damage. “His comment that Putin had to go was an unforced error. It strengthens Putin at home, makes it difficult for any domestic opposition to coalesce together,” the expert said. “No Russian citizen wants to be told by the leader of Russia’s main enemy about what their leadership can look like.”

A reporter asked whether the walkback was “undermining him on the world stage at a really critical moment.” An official deflected: “I think we all feel great about how the last couple of days have gone.”

But analysts were harsher. “The White House’s response to say ‘what he really meant’ is really gaslighting the American people. We know that he really doesn’t want Putin to be in power. They could have just said, listen—” one analyst said. “This isn’t his only gaffe. Biden also made the gaffe about sending the 82nd Airborne into Ukraine, which we’re not doing. It was not a good trip for the president because the three big gaffes really are at cross purposes with the overall message.”

NBC Poll: “His Worst Showing Yet”

An NBC News poll delivered devastating numbers. “President Biden’s job approval stands at just 40 percent, with 55 percent disapproving. This is his worst showing yet in our polls since he became president,” the anchor reported.

The underlying numbers were even worse. “By a fairly large 71 to 28 percent margin, Americans say they do not have a lot of confidence in President Biden’s ability to respond to this war,” the anchor said. “57 percent say we are already at war with Russia or will be within a year. 68 percent would prefer Mr. Biden make the economy his top priority, compared with just 29 percent who want him to focus on ending this war.”

A separate poll had Biden at 34%. An analyst said: “I’m surprised it’s that high.”

The Three Gaffes

The Europe trip was characterized by three major blunders beyond the “cannot remain in power” line:

“Sanctions never deter”: Biden contradicted his entire administration’s months-long messaging. His own officials were shown saying the opposite in a montage.

“Disseminate food shortages”: Biden said the U.S. would “increase and disseminate more rapidly food shortages” — apparently meaning the opposite.

Troops to Ukraine: Biden told the 82nd Airborne “you’re going to see when you’re there” — suggesting American troops would enter Ukraine. “The worst blunder of his presidency — really dangerous when we’re dealing with a nuclear power,” an analyst said.

”Democracy vs. Autocracy” Framing Questioned

The foreign policy expert also warned against Biden’s broader framing. “Framing it as democracy versus autocracy drives the Chinese closer to the Russians and makes it difficult for some of our own allies who are autocrats to stand with us,” the expert said. “I think we should frame this narrowly — Russia out of Ukraine — and impose so much pain that he never thinks about doing this again.”

Key Takeaways

Biden said Putin “cannot remain in power” — then the White House immediately walked it back; experts called it “an unforced error” that “strengthens Putin at home.”
NBC poll showed 40% approval — “his worst showing yet” — with 71% lacking confidence in Biden’s ability to respond to the war.
The Europe trip produced three major gaffes beyond the regime change line: “sanctions never deter,” “disseminate food shortages,” and suggesting troops would enter Ukraine.
68% of Americans wanted Biden to focus on the economy rather than the war; 57% believed the U.S. was already at war with Russia or would be within a year.
An expert warned the “democracy vs. autocracy” framing would drive China closer to Russia.
A separate poll had Biden at 34% overall; “he’s losing Blacks, whites, Latinos” — confirming the wartime setting provided no rally-around-the-flag boost.

Transcript Highlights

The following is transcribed from the video audio (unverified — AI-generated from audio).

For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power. That was an unforced error. It strengthens Putin at home.
Biden’s job approval stands at just 40 percent. This is his worst showing yet. 71 percent lack confidence in his ability to respond to the war.
The White House saying what he really meant is gaslighting the American people.
The three big gaffes really are at cross purposes with the overall message.
Sanctions never deter. But: the purpose of the sanctions has always been and continues to be deterrence.
68 percent prefer Biden make the economy his top priority, not ending the war.

Full transcript: 1009 words transcribed via Whisper AI.