FALSEHOOD #31: Biden falsely claimed that as vice president, he awarded his uncle with the purple heart. (R)

Joe Biden said, “My dad, when I got elected vice president [in 2008], he said, ‘Joey, Uncle Frank fought in the Battle of the Bulge.’ He was not feeling very well now — not because of the Battle of the Bulge, but he said, ‘and he won the Purple Heart and he never received it. He never got it. Do you think you could help him get it? We will surprise him. So I got him the Purple Heart. He had won it in the Battle of the Bulge. And I remember he came over the house and I came out and [my father] said, ‘Present it to him, okay?’ We had the family there. I said, ‘Uncle Frank, you’ve won this and I wanted to —’ and he said, ‘I don’t want the damn thing.’ No, I’m serious, he said, ‘I don’t want it.’ I said, ‘What’s the matter, Uncle Frank? You earned it.’ He said, ‘Yeah, but the others died. The others died. I lived. I don’t want it.’”

Joe Biden made this false claim on December 16, 2022, during an event at Major Joseph R. “Beau” Biden III National Guard/Reserve Center, the state’s National Guard headquarters.

EXPLANATION: This is false. Frank Biden, Joe Biden’s uncle, died in 1999, nine years before Joe Biden became vice president. Joe Biden Sr., died in 2002, six years before Joe Biden became vice president. There is no way that Joe Biden’s story can even be true.

In addition, there’s no record of Frank Biden ever being a recipient for the purple heart award.

SOURCES

Kiely, E. (2022, December 19). Biden’s story about Uncle Frank doesn’t add up. FactCheck.org. Retrieved December 26, 2022, from https://www.factcheck.org/2022/12/bidens-story-about-uncle-frank-doesnt-add-up/

Nelson , S., & Doornbos, C. (2022, December 16). Biden claims his uncle Frank won purple heart but story doesn’t add up. New York Post. Retrieved December 26, 2022, from https://www.google.com/amp/s/nypost.com/2022/12/16/biden-claims-his-uncle-frank-won-purple-heart-but-story-doesnt-add-up/amp/