CNN's John King runs cover for Biden amid Putin gaffe: 'It's called being human'

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CNN's John King runs cover for Biden amid Putin gaffe: 'It's called being human'

CNN host John King is running cover for President Biden following criticism the latter received over an off-the-cuff remark calling for the end of Russian President Vladimir Putin's rule.

CNN host John King is running cover for President Biden following criticism the latter received over an off-the-cuff remark calling for the end of Russian President Vladimir Putin's rule in his own country.

"For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power," Biden said of Putin in weekend remarks to a Warsaw, Poland crowd while on a visit with NATO allies amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

During a Tuesday segment on his show "Inside Politics," King excused Biden over the gaffe, stressing "how important" it was that the White House sought to clarify his remarks, while arguing that Biden was "human" and that mistakes like that "can happen." 

CNN host John King on the set of "Inside Politics" on March 29, 2022. (Screenshot/CNN) (Screenshot/CNN)

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"You can see how important this was to the White House. Look, this is a president who, throughout his career – sometimes it’s charming, sometimes it gets him into trouble – he does speak off-the-cuff quite a bit, and sometimes his tongue, as I say – it happens to me. I'm on live television every day – gets out ahead of your brain. It can happen. It’s called being human," King said while discussing Biden's gaffe with a panel of journalists. 

King argued that Biden showed clarifying his remarks was "important to him" because he had a note card with him while speaking with reporters on Monday that included an explanation for the gaffe.

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the Royal Castle, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Warsaw, Poland March 26, 2022. Slawomir Kaminski /Agencja Wyborcza.pl via REUTERS  (Reuters)

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King's panelists joined in, also appearing to try and dampen the backlash being felt by Biden over the remarks. 

Olivier Knox, a correspondent for The Washington Post, argued that with his clarification, Biden was just "cleaning it up," and that his intended audience was not Putin, but rather Americans concerned over an intensifying conflict and the potential for the involvement of U.S. troops. 

Politico correspondent Laura Barron-Lopez stated that Biden's emotions clearly "got the best of him," but that he felt the need to clarify there was no policy shift toward regime change in Russia. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a concert marking the eighth anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia March 18, 2022. The banner reads: "For Russia".  (Sputnik/Sergey Guneev/Kremlin via REUTERS)

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Biden faced intense criticism following the gaffe, with a number of critics slamming his remarks. 

One CNN analyst declared the comments "a gift to Russian propagandists," while former Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard declared the ad-libbed moment showed Biden's true "objectives" for Putin.