President Biden said Wednesday evening that Japan was an example of a “xenophobic” nation, weeks after fêting Tokyo Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at a White House state dinner.
“You know, one of the reasons why our economy is growing is because of you and many others. Why? Because we welcome immigrants,” Biden mused at a DC fundraiser with Asian American and Pacific Islander donors before launching into a riff about the global economy.
“We look to — the reason — look, think about it,” the 81-year-old president said. “Why is China stalling so badly economically? Why is Japan having trouble? Why is Russia? Why is India? Because they’re xenophobic. They don’t want immigrants.”
Wednesday’s undiplomatic comments came three weeks after Biden welcomed Kishida, 66, to Washington and hailed the US relationship with Japan.
During Kishida’s visit, the two leaders pledged to deepen defense ties against the threat of Chinese military power.
Republicans were appalled by the president’s remarks, with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) writing on X: “That is why his staff doesn’t want him speaking without those note cards.”
“Japan and India are two of our very stoutest and important allies. We should speak of them with respect, which they command and deserve,” added former Pentagon official Elbridge Colby.
“Applying parochial progressive views to our allies is patronizing and foolish.”
“Biden’s attack on close US ally Japan is both stupid and outrageous,” agreed foreign policy analyst Nile Gardiner. “He is tougher on America’s allies (Israel, UK, Japan) than he is on America’s enemies.”
The White House tried to downplay Biden’s comments, with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre telling reporters the president was “talking about who we are as a country, right? He was talking about the importance about it being a country of immigrants, especially as we see the attacks that we have seen very recently in the last couple of years — on those attacks, on immigrants in particular.
“So it is important for us to remember that we are a country of immigrants,” she added. “The president is always going to be really clear on speaking to issues that matter to the American people. We are a country of immigrants, that matters.”
Japan has a population of 125 million and is the fourth-largest economy in the world behind the US, China and Germany.
However, the nation has been hamstrung by large amounts of public debt and an aging population, which some project to drop below 100 million by 2050.
As of the end of 2023, the number of foreign nationals taking residence in Japan had reached a record 3.4 million, up 10% from the prior year.
The Japanese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Biden has been pummeled by Republicans over the crisis unfolding at the US-Mexico border, which has strained resources in municipalities across the country.
Immigration and border security have emerged as top issues heading into the Nov. 5 election.
