Biden appears to forget name of his secretary of defense during BET interview

Social media commentators and journalists criticized President Biden for appearing to forget Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's name and only referring to him as a "Black man" in a recent interview, although others said the moment was being misread.

Biden has participated in a series of media appearances after his poor debate performance last month led to calls for him to withdraw from the race.

"It's all about treating people with dignity," Biden said in an interview with Black Entertainment Television (BET). "I named the secretary of defense, a Black man."

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"I named Ketanji Brown," he added, referring to his appointment in 2022 of Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.

The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. It was unclear if Biden did forget Austin's name or was simply referring broadly to administration members and appointees who are Black.

The president also seemingly forgot Austin's name in March, calling him "the guy who runs that outfit over there."

Biden was announcing the nomination of two female generals to lead US military combatant commands during a White House event earlier this year. "And I want to thank the sec — the, the, ah, former general. I keep calling him general, but my, my — the guy who runs that outfit over there," he said in March.

Political commentators and journalists were divided over Biden's comments, with some claiming that the president could not remember the name of one of his most critical Cabinet officials, while others said that the clip was being misinterpreted.

"In the BET interview to woo black voters, President Biden appears to