No, Biden did not admit to treason in event with Indian prime minister | Fact check

The claim: Biden admitted to treason

A June 26 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a clip of President Joe Biden saying he "sold a lot of state secrets" as he is seated next to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other officials.

"#JoeBiden Admits to TREASON!" reads the caption of the post. "My Goodness!"

"The post generated over 8,000 likes in less than a week. Similar posts, including ones from former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Republican Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, have amassed hundreds of interactions on Instagram and Twitter.

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Our rating: False

Biden didn’t admit that he committed treason in a July 23 roundtable event. The context and tone of his remarks make it clear the state secrets comment was a joke, and he later clarified that he was kidding.

Post misrepresents Biden's remarks at the roundtable event

On June 23, Biden held a roundtable event with Modi, senior officials and CEOs of technology companies to discuss ways for India and the U.S. to partner in designing and developing new technologies.

But Biden didn’t admit that he committed treason during the event. Rather, the Instagram post cuts off later comments where Biden indicates his state secrets comment was a joke.

As shown in the post, Biden said at the beginning of the event, according to a White House transcript:

“Okay.  We – I was just thanking the – anyway, I started off without you, and I sold a lot of state secrets and a lot of very important things that we shared.”

He goes on to say, “Now, all kidding aside – look, we’re teaming up to design and develop new technologies that are going to transform the lives of our people around the world,” according to the transcript and a longer clip of his remarks.

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The Associated Press reported that Biden made the joke as he, Modi and the other guests were already seated and reporters were beginning to enter the room.

The post comes amid allegations from House Republicans on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability that Biden’s involvement in his family’s business dealings were potentially improper or a threat to national security.

USA TODAY reached out to the White House and social media users who shared the claim for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

The Associated Press, Lead Stories and Factcheck.org also debunked this claim.

Our fact-check sources:

• The White House, June 23, Remarks by President Biden and Prime Minister Modi of the Republic of India in Meeting with Senior Officials and CEOs of Technology Companies
• The White House, June 23, President Biden and Prime Minister Modi Host a U.S.- India Technology Roundtable
• Associated Press, June 27, Social media posts misconstrue Biden’s joke about selling ‘state secrets’

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