President Joe Biden joked about his age on his 81st birthday and then appeared to mix up the names of two pop superstars.
Speaking at the 76th annual White House turkey pardon, Biden began by thanking the owners of the two turkeys, named Liberty and Bell, who hail from a farm in Minnesota.
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"By the way. It's my birthday today, and [the turkey owners] actually sang 'Happy Birthday' to me," Biden said. "I just want you to know it's difficult turning 60."
The crowd laughed, since the president actually turned 60 in 2002. Biden then seemed to confuse music sensation Britney Spears with her younger contemporary Taylor Swift. The remark began with Biden joking about how hard it is for turkeys to receive a presidential pardon.
"You could say this is even harder than getting a ticket to [Beyonce's] Renaissance Tour or Britney's tour," Biden said. "She's down in — it's kind of warm in Brazil right now."
President Biden seems to refer to Taylor Swift as Britney Spears pic.twitter.com/YUhOiVaDqQ
— The Messenger (@TheMessenger) November 20, 2023
Swift is on tour in Brazil after selling out concerts across the globe for much of 2023 but had to postpone a show over the weekend "due to the extreme temperatures in Rio." Biden apparently mixed her up with Spears, who is making headlines thanks to a new memoir but is not touring at the moment.
At 76, the turkey pardon tradition is nearly as old as Biden, a fact that became the subject of another joke.
"I want you to know I wasn't there for the first one," he said. "I was too young to make it up."
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He finished by declaring, "That's a big bird, man!" before delivering the pardon.
"I hereby pardon Liberty and Bell," Biden said.