Tag: Joe Biden

Trump revives 2016 playbook for Biden battle

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President Trump is embracing a similar playbook to the one that guided him to a surprise victory in 2016, hoping the same strategy will win him reelection in November.

In both 2016 and the closing months of the 2020 campaign, his messaging has focused heavily on his base, he has made near-daily media appearances to drive the news cycle, he has used law and order and the fear of violence in cities to motivate voters, and he has accused his opponents of corruption.

The strategy proved successful four years ago, and he appears poised to rely on a comparable formula with just 70 days until Election Day. That approach was on full display Monday in a roughly hourlong speech in which Trump blasted the media, torched “weak” Democratic leaders for their handling of protesters and reiterated his belief that he can lose in November only if there’s a “rigged election,” even as allies acknowledge mail-in ballots are safe. Continue reading.

Biden and Harris push back on GOP attacks in their first joint TV interview

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Joe Biden and Kamala D. Harris on Sunday night pushed back on accusations that they would defund police departments and increase taxes on the middle class or that the presidential nominee is facing mental decline, three narratives that Republicans have promoted and are expected to focus on as their convention begins Monday.

In the Democratic duo’s first joint television interview, aired Sunday night on ABC, Biden reiterated his support for increasing funding to police departments — and noted that President Trump’s budget would cut grants to local law enforcement.

“I don’t want to defund police departments. I think they need more help, they need more assistance,” Biden said. His policing plan, which has been criticized by more liberal elements of his party, would give $300 million more to departments for community policing efforts. Continue reading.

Stakes high for Supreme Court as Trump battles for reelection

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President Trump has a chance to transform the Supreme Court into a conservative supermajority if he wins another four-year term, underscoring the potential stakes of this year’s election for future court decisions on everything from the Second Amendment to abortion.

If reelected, Trump would likely get the opportunity to replace ailing liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, and possibly fellow liberal Justice Stephen Breyer, 82, which would give conservatives a commanding 6-3 or 7-2 majority. It would also move the court’s fulcrum to the right of its current ideological center, Chief Justice John Roberts, whose stewardship of the court is seen by some conservatives with increasing skepticism.

At the same time, a Democratic win in November could lead to a dramatic reshaping in the opposite direction. A Biden administration might get the chance to field a liberal replacement for conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, 72. He is currently the longest-serving member of the court, and his 28-year tenure is beyond the typical length of service. Continue reading.

Dark vs. light: Trump declares himself the only barrier to ‘anarchy, madness and chaos’

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It took less than 14 hours for President Trump to reinforce the central theme of former vice president Joe Biden’s Democratic convention acceptance speech.

Biden’s speech centered on an unsubtle contrast: the choice between light and dark.

“I give you my word,” Biden said. “If you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us, not the worst. I will be an ally of the light, not of the darkness.” Continue reading.

A Week That Was Disastrous For Trump, Miraculous For Biden

Tens of thousands of news cases of COVID-19 are diagnosed in the United States every day, but if you listen to President Donald Trump, it’s easy to forget the pandemic is still raging. He shows little interest. He’s more focused, as ever, on his own personal grievances. Of course, he has the luxury of not worrying much about the virus when his job is secured — at least through January — and everyone around him is subjected to a rigorous testing regime that people at most U.S. schools and workplaces can only dream of.

As the Democratic Party carried out its national convention this week, Trump continued to give in to his self-destructive impulses. It made for a particularly stark contrast. Most of former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign had been carried out under the radar — he hasn’t simply been hiding in his basement, as critics claim, but he hasn’t been clamoring for the spotlight — but it burst on to the national stage for two-plus hours of primetime for four nights in a row. And while the Democrats were, for the most part, organized and professional, Trump was crawling out of his skin at the thought of ceding the country’s attention.

So instead of letting Democrats bask in the traditional uninterrupted flow of media attention given during presidential nominating conventions, Trump demanded to be seen. Continue reading.

World War II vet and NRA member: ‘Trump has been the worst president we’ve ever had’

A World War II veteran, lifetime Republican, and NRA member explains why he’s voting for Joe Biden

Donald Trump speaks often of how he loves veterans and supports them, despite raiding the pensions of veterans to fund his wall and misusingcharitable funds earmarked for them.

On Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention, 95-year-old Edward Good — a World War II veteran, lifetime Republican, NRA member, and a 2016 Trump voter — spoke about how he’ll be voting for Joe Biden for president.

I am Edward Good. I’m a veteran of World War II and of Korea. When I wear a uniform, I wear only two badges, my parachute wings, and the combat infantry badge. I did make combat jump over the Rhine in Germany and I’m proud of that. I have been a republican since the 1960s.

I’m a member of the NRA and voted for Trump. I think Trump has been the worst president we’ve ever had so I’ll be glad to see him go. I think Joe Biden will be a great leader for the United States.

Continue reading.

‘Are you really going to impeach me?’: How the Ukraine bombshell unfolded over 48 hours and laid bare Trump’s fixation with Biden

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Just after 8 a.m. on Tuesday, September 24, 2019, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in her Georgetown apartment, getting ready for the day that was going to be like no other in her long career. This was the day she would formally, officially, finally announce that the House was opening the impeachment inquiry against President Trump.

The California Democrat had resisted calls for impeachment from the left flank of her party for months. As the speaker, the one making the decision, Pelosi had to keep calibrating the risks. There was a risk to doing something, and a risk to doing nothing. She didn’t want to tolerate presidential misconduct. But she also didn’t want the House, or her party, to be seen as taking away the voters’ power to decide Trump’s fate. An impeachment couldn’t be personal, she kept telling her leadership team, or about policy differences. It had to be careful, fair, and easy for the American people to understand to avoid a severe backlash in an already deeply divided nation. As much as many of Trump’s actions appalled her, she had not seen an ironclad, public-unifying offense among them.

But now she had come to believe that Trump had abused his power on a July 25 phone call with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, in which he had suggested Ukraine open investigations that would benefit Trump personally — including one into his chief political rival, former vice president Joe Biden. Continue reading.

Biden speaks from a place Trump doesn’t know — the heart

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President Trump has tried every dirty trick in the book — and a few new ones — to cast doubts about the workings of Joe Biden’s brain. But Trump has been focusing on entirely the wrong organ. Biden’s appeal is from the heart.

The Democratic presidential nominee, in the most crucial speech of his long career in public service, had no problem clearing the low bar Trump had set. The evening began with a clip of Biden quoting Kierkegaard and ended with him quoting the Irish poet Seamus Heaney.

But the power of Biden’s acceptance speech — and the power of his candidacy — was in its basic, honest simplicity. The rhetoric wasn’t soaring. The delivery was workmanlike (he botched an Ella Baker quote in his opening line). But it was warm and decent, a soothing, fireside chat for this pandemic era, as we battle twin crises of disease and economic collapse and we only see each other disembodied in boxes on a screen. Biden spoke not to his political base but to those who have lost loved ones to the virus. Continue reading.

Biden vows to lead America out of ‘season of darkness’

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Former Vice President Joe Biden said he’d lead the country out of what he called a “season of darkness” and vowed to “draw on the best” of what America has to offer as he accepted the Democratic presidential nomination on Thursday night, setting up a general election battle with President Trump in November.

In his speech, Biden blasted Trump as a president who has sowed chaos and division. He cast himself as the candidate who would unite Republicans and Democrats, while leading the country out of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic downturn and racial turmoil.

“The current president has cloaked American anger for far too long. Too much anger, too much division. Here and now, I give you my word – if you entrust me with the presidency, I’ll draw on the best of us, not the worst,” Biden said. “I’ll draw on the light, not the darkness. It’s time for us, for we the people to come together. And make no mistake, we can and will overcome this season of darkness in America. We’ll choose hope over fear, facts over fiction, fairness over privilege.” Continue reading.

Minnesota Delegates React to the Nomination of Joe Biden to be the Next President of the United States

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA –  Below are reactions from Minnesota delegates to the Democratic National Convention to the nomination of Joe Biden to be the next President of the United States of America:

“Joe Biden will bring back decency, respect, and hope to our country.  We will build back better.”

– Wang-Yu Vu from Lino Lakes, Minnesota

“As a 19 year old Biden Delegate, I am incredibly happy to see him as the Democratic Party nominee for President of the United States! I am passionate about electing Vice President Joe Biden because he will restore decency, honesty, and integrity to the White House. Additionally, Joe Biden is empathic and he will work his hardest to make the lives of all Americans better.”

– Elizabeth Rose Hansel from Roseville, Minnesota

Continue reading “Minnesota Delegates React to the Nomination of Joe Biden to be the Next President of the United States”