President Joe Biden praised the resilience of New Orleans after the ISIS-inspired terrorist attack on Bourbon Street – and cracked a joke about the rescheduled Sugar Bowl on Thursday afternoon.
The 81-year-old gave an update on the investigation into the rampage that killed 14 people on New Year’s Eve at the start of remarks about confirming 235 judges to the bench during his tenure.
‘New Orleans is a city of tremendous spirit. You can’t keep it down. You really can’t,’ Biden said in the State Dining Room of the White House.
‘And we’re seeing that today, the Sugar Bowl is back on. Kickoff is going to take off very shortly,’ he noted. ‘If I don’t get this damned thing done we’re going to be in real trouble,’ he quipped.
‘People of New Orleans are sending an unmistakable message. They will not let this attack, the attacks, or the attackers’ deluded ideology overcome us,’ Biden said, minutes before the game began following a spontaneous chant following the National Anthem. He joined city leaders who also called for people to carry on with public activities, in a city that depends heavily on tourism including at large scale events like the upcoming Super Bowl and annual Mardi Gras festivities.
Biden said the government would ‘continue to relentlessly pursue ISIS and other terrorist organizations where they are,’ and said they would find no ‘safe harbor.’ Authorities say the attacker had an ISIS flag inside his electric Ford F-150 truck.
His remarks came after the FBI announced that contrary to some earlier information, investigators believe the attacker acted alone.
‘They have no information that anyone else is involved in the attack,’ Biden said.
He has no class . Not an ounce of it.