Joe Biden gave the Republicans who regularly question his mental acuity a cringe-worthy feast of material on Wednesday when he attempted to give a shout-out to former Indiana congresswoman Jackie Walorski during the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. Walorski, of course, was not there — as she and two of her staffers were tragically killed in a car crash on August 3, while returning from a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Trevor Noah shared the painfully awkward clip with viewers on Wednesday night, which he practically had to watch from between his fingers. While thanking lawmakers at the event from the podium, Biden asked, “Jackie, are you here? Where’s Jackie?” And yes, it was as awkward as you’d imagine.
“Noooooooooo!,” was Noah’s immediate reply to the unfortunate gaffe. “Noooo, Joe! What are you doing?!? Ahhhhhhh… that’s so awkward! And his explanation didn’t help. He was like, ‘Of course I knew Jackie was dead. I was looking for Jackie Kennedy. Where’s Jackie Kennedy? Where are you, Jackie? Where’s Jackie O?”
But Noah, in a desperate search for some silver lining, managed to find a sliver: “I mean, I guess on the upside he noticed that she wasn’t there. That’s a good thing! It could’ve been much worse if he was like, ‘Where’s Jackie? Oh, there she is. There’s Jackie. Everyone look at Jackie!”
While Noah acknowledged that many people are pointing to the whoopsie as yet another senior moment from the soon-to-be octogenarian, The Daily Show host insists that, “if anything, this makes Biden a better president. Think of how hard he must be working right now to keep Americans safe knowing that Osama bin Laden is still out there somewhere.”
You can watch the full clip above, beginning around the 3:45 mark.