President Joe Biden’s statement after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore may have been one of the most bizarre of his presidency — and that pretty bizarre given his record.
Biden not only claimed that he traversed the bridge by train, an impossibility, but also said the federal government would pay to rebuild it.
Combined, the two elicited the usual commentary on X that might be summarized in one question: What in Heaven’s name is he talking about?
No, He Didn’t Cross on A Train
By now, everyone is familiar with Biden’s fabulist claims, which might not be deliberate lies, including that he was a truck driver; a civil rights activist; that his son, Beau, died in Iraq; and the most recent story about the beginning of his less-than-remarkable legal career.
The latest adds to that list, and quickly surfaced on X.
“Before I leave for North Carolina, which I’m going to do in a few minutes, I want to speak briefly about the terrible incident and accident that happened in Baltimore this morning,” Biden said to open his remarks.
But he immediately segued into what could have been one of the false memories associated with dementia:
At about 1:30, a container ship struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which I’ve been over many, many times commuting from the state of Delaware either on a train or by car. I’ve been to Baltimore Harbor many times. And the bridge collapsed, sending several people and vehicles into the water — into the river.
There followed his description of the events. But what caught the eye of Biden watchers was his account of crossing the bridge by train. Biden never crossed the bridge by train because a train could never have crossed it. It was a toll bridge for cars and trucks.
The usual hilarity followed.
“Please, @JoeBiden, highlight the rail line,” wrote South Carolina’s U.S. Senate candidate Thomas Murphy over photos of the bridge.
“He’s gonna have a hard time on that,” the Brick Suit X feed replied with the four-lane span’s dimensions.
“Furthermore, his son Beau died from cancer years after getting caught in a bridge collapse, so he understands the pain,” another wrote, lampooning Biden’s frequent claim that his son died in Iraq.
“His first wife probably died on that bridge,” wrote another.
Another quip riffed off Biden’ truck-driving yarn:
I think he meant that he drove an 18 wheeler over it many times. He was haulin’ coal from the mine his daddy worked at. He got cancer from it. It was diagnosed the day his son died in Iraq in some year or another
Uncle Sam Will Pay
After Biden offered the latest news about the collapse, out of nowhere he delivered the big promise:
It’s my intention that the federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge, and I expect to — the Congress to support my effort.
This is going to take some time. And the people of Baltimore can count on us, though, to stick with them at every step of the way until the port is reopened and the bridge is rebuilt.
You know, we’re not leaving until this job gets done — not leaving until then.
That vow to pick up the bill elicited the obvious point from the Wall Street Silver X feed.
“Why isn’t the insurance company of that vessel paying for any part of the damages?” the user asked. “Why would the Fed government foot the bill?”
Some users noted that the insurance would pay the government.
One speculated that the government will pay for it to avoid an intensive investigation by the shipping company’s insurance carrier.
“If the insurance company were to pay damages for the bridge — they would investigate to rule out Force Majure or an intentional event which would impact their liability!!” the user wrote.
Force Majeure is a clause in a contract that releases one party from financial liability for an event if it was unavoidable or caused by something out of the other party’s control. “These clauses generally cover both natural disasters and catastrophes created by humans,” Investopedia explains, including “hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes … armed conflict and man-made diseases.”
Such an event is typically called an “act of God.”
However, the event cannot be the result of one party’s fault or negligence, the Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute says.
Sal Mercogliano, who runs the What’s Going With Shipping X feed and YouTube Channel, explained in a video that the ship lost power twice, and black smoke was pouring out of its port funnel. He also said the barriers around the bridges’ pilings were “not enough.”
“Given the video taken of the collision and past/similar incidents, a few causes to consider to secure other ports,” retired Navy officer and Heritage Foundation expert Brent Sadler wrote on X:
1. Mechanical/electrical failure causing loss of ship control
2. Navigational error
The fact that the ship was leaving port in what appeared to be clear visibility, slack tide, and calm seas — an act of god or environmental causes seems unlikely. It would also be at a time the crew at highest alert as port arrivals/departures critical times for navigating.
#1 seem most likely which leads to questions regarding:
1. Material condition or maintenance practices of key ship systems
2. Navigational practices and training of the crew
3. Potential interference (cyber?) of ship’s navigational or other control systems
Investigation may take a long time, but must be methodical and not rule out causes or combination of failures compounding to today’s collision. In the meantime, the search for the missing and efforts to re-open this important port will continue.
