US presidents and their offsiders have an unfortunate habit of awkward moments at the expense of their allies, and Prime Minister Scott Morrison has just been added to the honour roll.
In the historic announcement on Thursday of a new trilateral military and technology-sharing agreement between Australia, the US and the UK, President Joe Biden referred to Morrison as “that fellow Down Under, thank you very much pal”.
Social media users suggested the stumble came about because Biden forgot Morrison's name. Watch the video above and judge for yourself.
Biden's statement followed Morrison's and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's.
“Thank you Boris,” Biden began. “And I want to thank – that fellow Down Under. Thank you, Mr Prime Minister. Appreciate it, pal.”
Biden went on to laud the strength and importance of the longstanding alliance between the three countries, and towards the end of his remarks did refer to “Mr Morrison” by name.
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Morrison's predecessor in office, Malcolm Turnbull, had his name mangled by the White House, in his case by the administration of Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump.
Turnbull's first phone call with Trump in 2017 was a tense affair, with the new US president lashing Turnbull over a refugee resettlement deal brokered with previous US commander-in-chief Barack Obama.
At a later press conference after the content of the call was revealed, White House press secretary Sean Spicer repeatedly referred to Turnbull as “Trunbull” and “Trumbull”.
Even Queen Elizabeth has not been spared, with then-president George W. Bush in 2007 infamously misspeaking that she had attended the US bicentennial in “1776” – inadvertently adding 200 years to the age of both the US and the Queen.
“She gave me a look that only a mother could give a child,” Bush said after realising his gaffe.
https://www.9news.com.au/national/aukus-agreement-us-president-joe-biden-gaffe-over-scott-morrison-name/e715633d-979e-4c32-b763-3b92db5d73e1
