By Darragh Roche
US News Reporter
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Retired General Stanley McChrystal has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for president. McChrystal famously mocked Biden in a controversial interview in 2010.
McChrystal was one of the nation's most senior military commanders, leading the Joint Special Operations Command under President George W. Bush and briefly serving as head of the the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan under President Barack Obama.
He spoke to MSNBC's Morning Joe on Thursday morning and offered his endorsement of the Democratic presidential candidate. He also discussed the famous interview.
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McChrystal said Biden as president "would surround himself with an effective team of good people."
"I think he would set a tone in which he brings out the best of people," he said.
"Again, not everybody will agree with every policy―nobody ever will―and that's healthy in a democracy. But we have to believe in our values. You have to believe that your commander-in-chief, at the end of the day, is someone you can trust. And I can trust Joe Biden."
In a 2010 profile in Rolling Stone, McChrystal was quoted making fun of Biden, who was then vice president. He and one of his aides responded to a question about Biden and their remarks quickly became a major news story.
"Are you asking about Vice President Biden?" McChrystal reportedly laughed. "Who's that?"
McChrystal's adviser added: "Biden? Did you say: Bite Me?"
The general later apologized but was forced to resign the day after the profile was published. The Obama administration denied his resignation was a result of the comments but rather a matter of strategic differences.
McChrystal addressed the interview on Thursday, saying the controversy was "more smoke than fire" and stressing his work with Obama and Biden as part of the reason for his endorsement.
"I think my willingness to endorse him now should signal to people that there was a respectful relationship then, and just how important I think it is to replicate that kind of relationship between senior military leaders now," McChrystal said.
"I worked most closely with President Obama and Vice President Biden when I commanded in Afghanistan, and I had policy differences at times," he said. "But in every instance, they listened. In every instance, they took in my view."
"In every instance, I felt that they were trying to make the best decision based on all the information they had and based upon a bedrock of values."
McChrystal previously criticized Trump during an ABC interview in 2018 and he endorsed Democratic Representative Seth Moulton of Massachusetts during the party's primaries.
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