Four More Years? Biden at the Tribal Nations Summit: 'Oh, I Don't Know About That' (November 30, 2022)

President Joe Biden had just finished his speech to the White House Tribal Nations Summit when someone in the crowd gave him a campaign chant. “Four more years!” the audience member called out, according to the official White House transcript [1].

Biden did not take the bait. “Oh, I don’t know about that. Thanks. Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he said. “Finally, finally, finally. Let’s keep it going, okay? Thank you.” [1]

Seconds earlier, he had made a big claim. “Well, I’ll tell you what: No one has ever done as much as President as this administration is doing. Period. Period,” Biden said, before closing: “And as my grandfather Finnegan would say, ‘That’s the Irish of it.’” [1]

The video above shows Biden’s Nov. 30, 2022, remarks at the Department of the Interior in Washington, three weeks after the midterm elections. Quotes are from the official White House transcripts [1][2].

”There’s No Chairs Out Here”

Biden opened with a chair joke. “Please, take a seat if you have one. I say that because one day I said, ‘Take a seat,’ and everybody said, ‘He doesn’t even understand there’s no chairs out here,’” he said, to laughter [1].

”I Thought You Said ‘No’”

In the middle of the speech, someone in the audience called out something the transcript lists as inaudible. “Respect for — beg your pardon?” Biden asked. “I thought — I thought you said ‘no.’” [1]

“Thank you!” the audience member said. “I was — I was getting a little worried. I thought you said — someone said ‘no,’” Biden answered [1].

Near the end, he invited the tribal leaders to correct him. “And I’m sure I’ll make mistakes, but you know me. Don’t hesitate to correct me when I make them. I know you; you won’t hesitate,” Biden said, to laughter. “You got that right!” someone in the audience called back [1].

”$35- — $32 Billion”

Biden also corrected one of his own numbers on the fly. “I invested more than $35- — $32 billion in the American Rescue Plan, the largest one-time-ever direct investment in Indian Country in American history,” he said [1].

He joked about the first lady’s travels. “I’m worried she’s not going to come home one of these days — (laughter) — when she goes. You think I’m joking. I’m telling you, if I hear more about the Navajos than I hear about me — (laughter). You all think I’m kidding, don’t you?” [1]

He told the leaders about a lesson from his early Senate days. “As a matter of fact, I made a commitment when I was basically a 30-year-old senator and a student of Danny Inouye, the senator from the state of Hawaii, who made it clear to me — because I said ‘Indian Country.’ He said, ‘No, Indian nations,’” Biden recalled [1].

He made a promise, too. “But I can say here today I intend to make official presidential visits to Indian Country to make it official,” Biden said [1].

”This Won’t Take More Than Half an Hour”

That evening, Biden lit the National Christmas Tree. “This won’t take more than half an hour,” he began, to laughter [2].

He thanked the performers, then trailed off. “As a matter of fact, I don’t know how they did it with — just that one beautiful lady coming out. Anyway. It’s a long story. (Laughter.) Freezing,” Biden said [2]. His remarks began at 6:28 p.m. and ended at 6:31 p.m., according to the transcript [2].

“We’re the only nation in the world that comes out of every crisis we’ve encountered stronger than we went in,” Biden said. “So, from the Biden family to yours, Merry Christmas, America!” [2]

By the Numbers

$32 billion: the American Rescue Plan figure Biden settled on after first saying “$35-” [1].
$13 billion: what Biden said he put into infrastructure in Indian Country [1].
60+: Native American appointees across his administration, per Biden [1].
3 minutes: the length of the “half an hour” Christmas tree remarks [2].
Nearly 2 years: from Biden’s promise to his first visit to Indian Country as president, per Fox 13 [5].

What Happened Next

Biden ran anyway, then quit. On April 25, 2023, Biden announced: “That’s why I’m running for re-election” [3]. On July 21, 2024, he wrote that “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down” [4].

The Indian Country visit came in the final stretch of his term. On Oct. 25, 2024, Biden went to the Gila River Indian Community near Phoenix and formally apologized for the federal boarding school system “in his first visit to Native Country,” Fox 13 reported. “Biden, whose presidency is winding down, had promised tribal leaders nearly two years ago that he would make a visit to Indian Country,” the station reported [5].

The station noted the timing: the trip, 11 days before the election, “will also provide a boost to Vice President Kamala Harris’ turnout effort in a key battleground state” [5].

For Biden calling himself “Kamala’s running mate” the next summer, see HYGO News’ page on the Mayflower event. For Harris on whether Biden would run, see the page on her Philippines gaggle.