The campaign continues.
Joe Biden (D) [2020 file photo].
From a press pool report of a Biden Campaign virtual fundraiser with Obama Administration and Campaign alumni held this afternoon.
On the COVID-19 pandemic:
“Our job isn’t just to win this election or implement a plan to end this crisis. Those are just the table stakes. Getting back to where we were in January 2017 isn’t enough. This crisis is shining a really bright light on the inequities and failures that plague our society. That’s a devastating, devastating problem that’s playing out in the cruelest ways. But it’s also an opportunity. We need an overwhelming moral response to meet this moment and to heal the fissures in our society to address those inequities. I want to get us through this immediate crisis to resurrect America in a way that reflects our values. I think it’s a moral imperative that from this moment we rebuild our nation, our economy, our health care system, our education system, our justice system, our energy system, everything in a way that truly brings everybody along, leaves no one behind, no community behind. That’s the idea at the heart of this campaign. And that’s a tall order. I know.”
On Donald Trump:
“Donald Trump is–Can I say politely?–just about the worst possible person to handle a crisis like this. He seemed completely overwhelmed by it. He doesn’t have a team, the temperament or, quite frankly, the moral authority to take it on. And frankly, he doesn’t put a high enough value on American lives to make this fight and make the right calculations, the right choices. To tell the truth. His priorities are elsewhere and it shows.”
On talking to Obama about running mates:
“What he said when talking about to me about vice president, who I should think about etc. and how I should go about it, he made the point, he said, ‘Find people who can make up for what you don’t have as much experience in doing.’”
More on the COVID-19 pandemic:
“When I announced, I said I’m running to restore the soul of America. Well, let me tell you, we’re seeing the soul of America. Look at all those people. Look at all those ordinary people risking their lives. And some lose their lives to care for everybody else without asking what your race, religion, ethnicity, without asking where you’re from. Just stepping up, stepping up and doing it in circumstances where they know they’re putting their lives at risk because they don’t have a proper protective gear.”
On the right wingnut astroturf at the Michigan capitol building:
“Can you imagine? Can you imagine any former Republican president, I’m talking from Reagan and the two Bushes condoning people in the state capital, carrying AR 15s and semi-automatic weapons?” he said, noting he saw a swastika in one of the photos. “Can you imagine any former president not condemning that to try to intimidate a governor, the legislature? And the responsibility of meeting that threat falls to us.”
On Tara Reade:
“Your trust and faith has always meant a great deal to me. So first, let me say unequivocally, this claim is simply not true. It did not happen. Now, my knowledge that it isn’t true does nothing to shake my belief that women have to be able to be heard and that all the claims be taken seriously. It isn’t enough just to simply take my word for it and to dismiss it out of hand. Frankly, that shouldn’t be enough for anyone, because we know that this sort of approach is exactly how the culture of abuse has been allowed to fester for so long.
So I’m heartened to see it, although it’s painful sometimes, that by and large journalists are doing what they’re supposed to do. They’re going out there listening to the allegations. They’re taking it seriously and they’re investigating it. And they’re talking with folks who were there at the time, scrutinizing personnel records, examining the evolution of the claims, looking into the culture of our office. And I’m not concerned about what they might find, because I know the truth of the matter. I know that this claim has no merit. But as a candidate for president, I’m accountable to the American people. And I welcome that accountability and the scrutiny of the press as well.
Those of you who know me know that my entire life from public service and motivated by one issue above all else, identifying and eliminating the abuse of power, whatever form it takes. It’s why I wrote the Violence Against Women Act in the first place as a senator. It’s why I consider it my proudest achievement. As vice president, I worked with many of you making these issues a priority, elevating the Office of Violence Against Women at the Justice Department, starting with the It’s On US campaign to make sure college campuses are stable, engaging men and recognizing that sexual assault was their problem, too. And they had to step up and step in. They had a duty to speak out. Our country has made incredible strides and it’s been gratifying to see the change because we were fighting for what it was. It was a pretty lonely cause to begin with, and has taken on added urgency with Donald Trump now trying to roll back the progress we’ve made in our lives and on our culture. So I want to promise you as president, I will not for one second back off my life’s work of making every part of America, from campuses to military bases to boardrooms to family homes to digital space, places of safety and security for all women, free from abuse, free from the abuse of power.”
In stark contrast to Donald Trump (r).
Joe Biden (D) [2020 file photo].
