What was supposed to be a discreet visit from Joe Biden to Harvard University turned into a headline-grabbing fiasco — complete with student protests, verbal slip-ups, and a melting ice cream bar.
On Wednesday, April 16, the former president made an unannounced stop at Harvard’s Institute of Politics for a private session with about 50 Kennedy School students. Marketed internally as a visit from a “special guest,” the event was clearly meant to fly under the radar — perhaps due to Harvard’s ongoing $2.2 billion funding battle with current President Donald Trump, who has also threatened the school’s tax-exempt status.
But keeping things quiet didn’t go to plan. Outside the event, pro-Palestinian student activists quickly caught wind of the visit. Members of Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine gathered in Harvard Yard, ringing bells, banging drums, and chanting, “Biden, Biden, you can’t hide. You’re committing genocide,” according to The Harvard Crimson.
Inside, things didn’t go much smoother. Biden, 82, was accompanied by longtime advisor Mike Donilon — now a resident fellow at Harvard — who had to step in when Biden mistakenly referred to Ukraine as Iraq while discussing the war with Russia. The awkwardness continued when Biden tried to enjoy a post-speech ice cream bar, only for it to collapse mid-bite and splatter on the floor, as reported by The Crimson.
Despite the chaos, Biden did take time to praise Harvard for standing up to what he described as political intimidation from the Trump administration. He applauded the university for resisting calls to dismantle its DEI programs, allow audits of its curriculum, and more aggressively screen international students.
“Harvard stepped up in a way no one else has. You should be really thankful,” Biden said, according to The New York Post. The visit came just a day after Biden broke his post-presidency silence at a disability rights event, where he made headlines for describing political polarization and sparking controversy by using outdated racial terminology while recalling his childhood during school segregation.
On top of that, Biden fired shots at Trump’s stance on Social Security: “They’re shooting first and aiming later.” What was intended as a quiet moment of reflection at Harvard ended up as a chaotic spectacle — one that Biden and the university likely won’t forget anytime soon.
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