About

Joe Biden Crack Pipe Handout refers to a government program and grant fund issued by U.S. President Joe Biden that purportedly included the handout of safe smoking kits or "crack pipes" to drug addicts in order to advance "racial equity." The program received its full funding in February 2022, rolling out its $30 million plan going into the rest of the year. Memes and reactions surfaced online in regards to the plan shortly after, with users on both sides of the political aisle referencing it. Many memes centered on the President's son Hunter Biden, who's known for his past drug abuse and multiple photos of him with a crack pipe. Two days after the initial media coverage, the White House denounced the claims, stating that crack pipes were never included in the "safe smoking kits."

Background

On December 8, 2021, the United States government under the Biden administration issued a Notice of Funding for the 2022 Harm Reduction Program Grant.^[1] The grant was issued by the Federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under its Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The grant received funds over the course of two months, with its application deadline being February 7th, 2022. The fund amassed roughly $30 million USD.

One of the requirements for the grant was the purchase of "equipment and supplies to enhance harm reduction efforts," which, among its 20 examples, included "safe smoking kits/supplies." Under this umbrella of supplies were crack pipes, which were specifically cited by a spokesperson for HHS in a recent Washington Free Beacon^[2] article. The briefing emphasized that the pipes could be used to safely smoke crack cocaine or crystal meth.

Additionally, the grant was promoted under the umbrella of "racial equity," as in applicants for the grants were prioritized if they treated "underserved communities," including Black Americans and LGBTQ+ persons. This sentiment was then related to President Joe Biden's executive order on "advancing racial equity" by the HHS spokesperson.^[2]

Developments

On February 7th, 2022, reactions to the grant started to appear online after widespread media coverage began. The first to report on the story was Fox News, who, on February 7th, aired a segment during their show "Fox Business Tonight" where Republican U.S. Senator Kevin McCarthy was the guest. Around the three-minute mark, McCarthy was quoted saying, "This administration is now going to spend $30 million from hard-working taxpayers on buying crack pipes for drug addicts." The segment was uploaded to YouTube where it received roughly 94,900 views in two days (shown below).

Other news outlets started to cover the story on February 8th. For instance, the Daily Mail^[3] published an article on the 7th and Newsweek^[1] posted their article on the 9th, with many more over the course of early February 2022.

Reaction In Memes

Joe Biden crack pipe memes appeared across platforms going into the rest of February 2022. The most notable platforms adding to the trend were Twitter, Instagram and Funnyjunk. For instance, on February 8th, Twitter^[4] user TimRunsHisMouth posted a tweet that referenced the Ivermectin COVID-19 treatment controversy, earning roughly 31,300 likes and 9,300 retweets in one day (shown below).

Also on February 8th, 2022, Twitter^[5] user azaustinsmith tweeted a humorous reaction, creating a mock-slogan for Joe Biden reading, "You bring the drugs, we’ll provide the pipe," earning roughly 2,700 likes in one day (shown below).

On Instagram, the first page to reference the controversy within a meme was conservative Instagram^[6] page muhfreedommemes who exploited the Pawn Stars meme Best I Can Do Is, editing in Biden's face over Rick Harrison's and also adding in Hunter Biden's face. The meme (shown below) received over 800 likes in one day.

Other meme pages on Instagram referenced Hunter Biden's crack pipe photos, such as Instagram^[7] page antistatenet, whose meme (shown below, left) received roughly 5,300 likes in one day. Instagram page grandoldmemes (responsible for popularizing John Xina) was also quick to hop onto the trend. The account posted a carousel post^[8] on February 8th that included multiple image macros, all photoshopping crack pipes into imagery associated with Joe Biden (an example shown below, right), earning roughly 11,200 likes over the course a day.

One of grandoldmemes' memes depicting Joe Biden as Salt Bae was reposted to Funnyjunk^[9] on February 8th, earning five upvotes in one day (shown below, left). Also on the 8th, FunnyJunk^[10] user memelore posted a meme that used an image of Vice President Kamala Harris on the phone, earning over 400 upvotes in one day (shown below, right).

The Funnyjunk meme (shown above, right) also referenced Black History Month, which multiple Twitter users also humorously noted in their reactions. For instance, Twitter^[11] user JackPosobiec posted a tweet on February 9th that referenced Joe Rogan's N-word controversy in relation to Biden's crack pipe memes and Black History Month, earning roughly 23,800 likes in less than 24 hours (shown below).

The White House Denounces "Crack Pipe" Claims

On February 9th, 2022, White House press secretary Jen Psaki gave a press conference in which she denounced the claim that crack pipes were going to be included in the harm reduction kits. When asked by a reporter, she reiterated that they were never included in the plan and that it was inaccurate reporting. The Twitter^[12] account TPostMillennial uploaded the clip on the 9th, earning over 50 likes in two hours (shown below).

Psaki says crack pipes "were never a part of the kit. It was inaccurate reporting and we wanted to put out information to make that clear." pic.twitter.com/1mmgc8BIv7

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) February 9, 2022

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