U.S. Vice President Joe Biden must have mixed up his geography in his head - or maybe it was his speechwriter that did so - when he told students at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government that "North America is the epicenter of enregy in the world today."

That could have passed scrutiny and could actually be fact, but Mr. Biden just wanted to be specific.

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So he continued: 

"North America will account -- meaning Mexico, China and Canada -- for two-thirds of the growth of global energy supply over the next 20 years (emphasis supplied).  By 2018, the United States will be a net exporter of natural gas, and most projections show North America will be totally energy independent by 2020, and the United States shortly thereafter."

Fortunately, there was no visible reaction from the audience, but some students did look around to see if anyone else noticed the gaffe.

The occasion was the John F. Kennedy Forum, considered as Harvard's premier arena for political speech, debate and discussion. The Vice President spoke there on Friday evening. The White House Press Office put Biden's speech online with the same countries - Mexico, China, and Canada - still clumped into the Vice President's North America energy epicenter map. 

Biden did get a lot of favorable reviews that night, with some students posting selfies with the VP, and others saying he wanted to really answer everyone's question, extending the forum by 30 minutes.

Later in his remarks, Biden did talk about China, when the subject was on which place in the world was the best to invest in. 

He said, quoting a survey by Boston Consulting Group, that 54 percent of American corporations who have invested in China planned to come home by next year.

That part of the remarks was also printed on the White House Press Office website: 

"I don't know how long I've been hearing about how China  - and I want China to succeed, it's in our interest they succeed economically - about how China is eating America's lunch.  Folks, China has overwhelming problems.  China not only has an energy problem, they have no water.  No, no, not a joke -- like California.  They have no water. (Laughter from the audience.)  It is a gigantic and multi-trillion-dollar problem for them.  We should help them solve the problem."

TagsJoe Biden, Harvard, Kennedy School