Video shows Biden gesturing to crowd, not embracing 'imaginary' person
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on December 22, 2023 at 18:10
- 3 min read
- By Bill MCCARTHY, AFP USA
Copyright © AFP 2017-2025. Any commercial use of this content requires a subscription. Click here to find out more.
"After shaking hands with invisible people several times, US President Joe Biden started hugging them," says a December 21, 2023 post on X, formerly Twitter, from a popular account called "S p r i n t e r."
"Biden shook hands with his imaginary friend again," the same profile, which has previously spread disinformation under aliases such as "Sprinter," added in a second post.
The short clip shows Biden lifting his hands as he looks to his left and then behind him after delivering a speech.
But posts claiming Biden was trying to engage an "imaginary" or "invisible" person are inaccurate.
They are the latest in a long history of manipulated or misrepresented videos purporting to show the Democratic president, 81, lost or confused, misreading social cues or dozing off on the job.
The latest clip captures the conclusion of Biden's December 20, 2023 address to the Wisconsin Black Chamber of Commerce in Milwaukee.
Other angles from the official White House stream and footage from C-SPAN and other US media show audience members seated around the stage as Biden spoke about his administration's economic policies and support for Black-owned small businesses (archived here, here, here and here).
The attendees stood up as Biden stepped away from the podium and turned toward them. He gestured in their direction -- rather than reaching for an "imaginary" person -- and continued to acknowledge different sections of the crowd while exiting the stage.
AFP photos from the event also show the audience.
AFP contacted the White House for comment, but no response was forthcoming.
AFP has debunked similar claims that Biden waved to no one after other speeches here and here.
Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.
Contact us
