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SCRANTON — Former Vice President Joe Biden spent Wednesday morning telling about 300 supporters that he intends to win back what was once the core of the Democratic Party’s support — the middle class.
Biden, who will be 77 on Nov. 20, returned to his childhood hometown on the same day President Donald Trump was appearing across the key battleground state in Pittsburgh.
Biden, the self-described scrappy kid from Scranton, was at the Scranton Cultural Center, not far from where he lived until age 10 on North Washington Avenue.
“I’m happy to be home,” Biden said. “As a kid, Scranton climbs into your heart and stays there.”
Biden then launched into a lengthy personal discussion about how Scranton shaped him and how his parents instilled in him the values needed to be successful — values like pride, compassion and dignity.
“My sister Val and I learned everything we needed to learn right here in Scranton,” Biden said. “Everybody is entitled to be treated with dignity. Always be true to your word. Honor your family.”
Biden said he learned those lessons around his kitchen table.
“Family is the beginning, the middle and the end,” he said. “I have great memories of Scranton, but more than those memories, those values are instilled in me — loyalty, patriotism, friendship, family and faith.”
Then Biden got to the business at hand — addressing the need for the country to restore the middle class.
“Donald Trump doesn’t know what it means to be a part of the middle class — I do,” Biden said. “The middle class isn’t a number — it’s a value set: owning a home, getting an education beyond high school, being able to save and get ahead. Donald Trump has had everything given to him and spent his entire life and presidency enriching himself.”
Biden talked about long walks with his father where he learned many lessons about life.
“The longest walk Trump’s father ever made was to drop off $400 million in his trust fund account,” Biden said. “I’ve spent my whole career — and will continue to do so — fighting like hell to make sure Americans have food on their table and a roof over their head.”
Biden then went on the attack, saying that as president, Trump has not only cut taxes for the wealthiest Americans and corporations, but he has made it more difficult for low-income and middle class workers to get what they’ve earned.
He said he and President Barack Obama put overtime protections in place to give more than four million workers overtime pay, but Trump is robbing hard-earned wages from millions of workers across the country — reversing the Obama administration protections, slashing the salary threshold, and introducing his own rule that will cost workers $1.2 billion in wages each year.
“As president, I am going to fight to rebuild this nation’s backbone — the middle class,” Biden said. “I’ll increase the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour and ensure that workers are paid fairly for the long hours they work and get the overtime they have earned.
“The middle class isn’t a number — it’s a set of values,” Biden said. “And Donald Trump has attacked those values by cutting taxes for the wealthiest Americans and corporations instead of middle class families, stripping the rights of unions to collectively bargain, and hurting hard-working Americans.”
Biden said if he were elected president, he would reward work over wealth and build an inclusive middle class where everybody is in on the deal — regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or disability.
“Today, working class parents can’t look their kids in the eye and tell them everything will be OK,” Biden said. “Hard-working Americans built this country, not Wall Street or investment bankers.”
Biden talked about the need for affordable health care, saying that the Trump administration “has no idea” what working Americans are going through every day.
“Here’s the deal: since Trump has taken office, health care premiums in Pennsylvania have increased,” Biden said. “Last year, the number of uninsured Pennsylvanians increased — a stark reverse from uninsurance rates falling under the Obama-Biden Administration. And, Trump wants to repeal Obamacare altogether, allowing insurance companies to once again deny coverage for the more than 5 million Pennsylvanians with pre-existing conditions like asthma, diabetes, and cancer.
“I have two words for Donald Trump: back off.”
Biden said Trump’s unrelenting attacks on health care are stopping Pennsylvanians from accessing the quality, affordable health care they need and deserve.
Biden also addressed gun laws, saying there are laws that protect geese, yet we allow automatic weapons that can load hundreds of rounds of ammunition.
“I’m not against the Second Amendment,” Biden said. “But we can’t allow these weapons to get into the hands of criminals. I took on the NRA twice and won. We have to stop this gun violence.”
Biden said he wants to rebuild the country’s educational system and ease the burden of college costs to graduates.
“If any country out-educates us, we will be out-competed.”
And Biden promised to create more higher paying jobs.
“We’re the wealthiest country in the world,” he said. “We have to lead by example.”
Biden spoke in front of a large American flag and before his speech, he met with several Scranton friends and colleagues. Biden spoke for about 45 minutes.
Biden recognized the importance of Pennsylvania in winning the 2020 election. The state went for Trump in 2016, with Luzerne County playing a key role for Trump despite being a predominant Democratic county. Trump lost Lackawanna County, but by a narrow margin.
