Joe Biden vows to unify and save country; Donald Trump hits Midwest
Joe Biden traveled Tuesday to the hot springs town where Franklin Delano Roosevelt coped with polio to declare the U.S. is not too politically diseased to overcome its health and economic crises, pledging to be the unifying force who can “restore our soul and save this country.” The Democratic presidential nominee offered his closing argument with Election Day just one week away while attempting to go on the political offensive in Georgia, which hasn’t backed a Democrat for the White House since 1992. He promised to be a president for all Americans regardless of party, even as he said that “anger and suspicion is growing and our wounds are getting deeper.” “Has the heart of this nation turned to stone? I don’t think so,” Biden said. “I refuse to believe it.” While Biden worked to expand the electoral map in the South, President Donald Trump focused on the Democrats’ “blue wall” states that he flipped in 2016 — Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — and maintained a far busier travel schedule taking him to much more of the country. At a cold, rain-soaked rally in the Michigan capital of Lansing, Trump said Biden supported the North American Free Trade Agreement and China’s entry into the World Trade Organization, both of which he said hurt the auto industry and other manufacturing in the state. “This election is a matter of economic survival for Michigan,” the president said, arguing that the state’s economy was strong before the coronavirus pandemic hit. “Look what I’ve done.” Trump also cheered Senate candidate John James — who may ultimately have a better chance of winning the state than the president — while attacking Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for moving aggressively to shut down much of the state’s economy to slow the virus’ spread. He even seemed to cast doubt on federal authorities breaking up what they said was a plot to kidnap her, which Whitmer has argued Trump’s “violent rhetoric” helped spark. “It was our people that helped her out with her problem. And we’ll have to see if it’s a problem. Right?” Trump said. “People are entitled to say ‘maybe it was a problem. Maybe it wasn’t.’” Biden, even as he predicted the country could rise above politics, went after his election rival, accusing Trump anew of bungling the federal response to the pandemic that has seen new cases surging in many areas, and failing to manage the economic fallout or combat institutional racism and police brutality that have sparked widespread demonstrations. “The tragic truth of our time is that COVID has left a deep and lasting wound in this country,” Biden said, scoffing at Trump’s pronouncements that the nation is turning a corner on the virus. He charged that the president has “shrugged. He’s swaggered. And he’s surrendered.” Venturing into Georgia was a sign of confidence by the Biden team, which is trying to stretch the electoral map and open up more paths to the needed 270 Electoral College votes. The former vice president plans to travel to Iowa, which Trump took by 10 points in 2016, later in the week. And his running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, is hitting Arizona and deep red Texas. Besides Lansing, Trump traveled to West Salem, Wisconsin. First lady Melania Trump was on the road, too, making her first solo campaign trip of the year in Pennsylvania. And Vice President Mike Pence was in South Carolina, maintaining his campaign schedule despite several close aides testing positive for the coronavirus last weekend. There, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham is in a potentially tight reelection race. Hillary Clinton flirted with GOP territory in 2016, only to lose traditional Democratic Midwestern strongholds. But a top Biden adviser rejected the notion that the campaign is spreading itself too thin, noting that the former vice president’s visit follows weeks of paid advertising in Georgia and visits by Harris and the candidate’s wife, Jill Biden. In the coming days, Biden will also visit Wisconsin, Michigan and Florida, where former President Barack Obama gave a speech in Orlando on Tuesday, blistering Trump with the theory that he was only worrying about the virus because it was dominating news coverage. “He’s jealous of COVID’s media coverage,” Obama said. “If he had been focused on COVID from the beginning, cases wouldn’t be reaching new record highs across the country this week.” Trump expressed his displeasure that Fox News carried his Democratic predecessor’s speech live, complaining to reporters about it and tweeting the network was “playing Obama’s no crowd, fake speech for Biden.” In Atglen, Pennsylvania, Melania Trump said she was feeling “so much better now,” just weeks after being diagnosed with the virus. She slammed Biden’s “socialist agenda,” praised her husband as “a fighter” and commented on his use of social media. “I don’t always agree the way he says things,” she said, drawing laughter from the crowd, “but it is important to him that he speaks directly to the people he serves.” The Trumps left for their campaign trips at the same time, and the president gave the first lady a quick peck on the cheek before they boarded separate planes. The president also visited Omaha, Nebraska, after a Sunday stop in Maine. That anticipates a razor-thin Electoral College margin since both areas offer one electoral vote by congressional district. “We have to win both Nebraskas,” Trump told the big crowd that gathered at the city’s Eppley Airfield, presumably referring to Omaha and the state’s more rural districts. While Biden rarely travels to more than one state per day, the Republican president has maintained a whirlwind schedule, focusing on his argument that he built a booming economy before the coronavirus pandemic upended it. Trump is planning a dizzying 11 rallies in the final 48 hours before polls close. His latest swing is also something of a victory lap after the Senate on Monday approved the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to give conservatives a commanding 6-3 advantage on the Supreme Court. Trump has sought to use the vacancy created by the
Donald Trump, Joe Biden go on offense in states they’re trying to flip
President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden went on offense Sunday, with each campaigning in states they are trying to flip during the Nov. 3 election that is just over two weeks away. Trump began his day in Nevada, making a rare visit to church before a fundraiser and an evening rally in Carson City. Once considered a battleground, Nevada has not swung for a Republican presidential contender since 2004. The rally drew thousands of supporters who sat elbow to elbow, cheering Trump and booing Biden and the press. The vast majority wore no masks to guard against the coronavirus. The president, as he often does, warned that a Biden election would lead to further lockdowns and at one point appeared to mock Biden for saying he would listen to scientists. “If I listened totally to the scientists, we would right now have a country that would be in a massive depression,” Trump said. Biden, a practicing Catholic, attended Mass in Delaware before campaigning in North Carolina, where a Democrat has not won in a presidential race since Barack Obama in 2008. Both candidates are trying to make inroads in states that could help secure a path to victory, but the dynamics of the race are remarkably stable. Biden enjoys a significant advantage in national polls, while carrying a smaller edge in battleground surveys. With Trump seated in the front row at the nondenominational International Church of Las Vegas, the senior associate pastor, Denise Goulet, said God told her the president is the apple of his eye and would secure a second term. “At 4:30, the Lord said to me, ‘I am going to give your president a second win,’” she said, telling Trump, “you will be the president again.” Trump offered brief remarks, saying “I love going to churches” and that it was “a great honor” to attend the service. The president also said that “we have a group on the other side that doesn’t agree with us,” and he urged people to “get out there on Nov. 3 or sooner” to vote. He dropped a wad of $20 bills in the collection plate before leaving. Trump also attended a fundraiser at the Newport Beach home of top GOP donor and tech mogul Palmer Luckey, which raised $12 million for his election. The Beach Boys performed. The message was far different later in the day when Biden attended a virtual discussion with African American faith leaders from around the country. Biden held up a rosary, which he said he carries in his pocket every day, and described it as “what the Irish call a prisoner’s rosary” since it was small enough to be smuggled into prisons. “I happen to be a Roman Catholic,” Biden said. “I don’t pray for God to protect me. I pray to God to give me strength to see what other people are dealing with.” Earlier, at a drive-in rally in Durham, North Carolina, Biden focused heavily on promoting criminal justice changes to combat institutional racism and promised to help build wealth in the Black community. He noted that Trump had said at one of his rallies that the country had turned the corner on the pandemic. “As my grandfather would say, this guy’s gone around the bend if he thinks we’ve turned the corner. Turning the corner? Things are getting worse,” Biden said. In addition to public polling that indicates Biden has an edge, the former vice president enjoys another considerable advantage over Trump: money. Over the past four months, his campaign has raised over $1 billion, and that has enabled him to eclipse Trump’s once-massive cash advantage. That’s become apparent in advertising, where Biden and his Democratic allies are on pace to spend twice as much as Trump and the Republicans in the closing days of the race, according to data from the ad tracking firm Kantar/CMAG. Though Trump has pulled back from advertising in Midwestern states that secured his 2016 win, he’s invested heavily elsewhere, including North Carolina, where he is on pace to slightly outspend Biden in the days ahead. In Nevada, which Trump came close to winning in 2016, Democrats are set to outspend Trump in the closing days by a more than 3-to-1 ratio. Trump’s visit to the state is part of an aggressive schedule of campaign events, where he has leaned heavily into fear tactics. As he tries to keep more voters from turning against him, Trump has sought to paint Democrats as “anti-American radicals” on a “crusade against American history.” He told moderate voters they had a “a moral duty” to join the Republican Party. If elected, Biden would be only the second Roman Catholic president in U.S. history and first since John F. Kennedy. Biden speaks frequently about his faith and its importance in his life. Biden started his day with Mass in Delaware at St. Joseph’s on the Brandywine, as he does nearly every week. He and his wife, Jill, entered wearing dark-colored face masks. She carried a bunch of flowers that including pink roses. The church is a few minutes’ drive from Biden’s home. Biden’s son Beau, who died of brain cancer in 2015, is buried in the cemetery on its grounds. Joe and Jill Biden visited the grave after the service. Trump attends church far less often but has drawn strong support from white Evangelical leaders and frequently hosts groups of pastors at the White House. Trump often goes to the Church of Bethesda-By-The Sea near Mar-a-Lago in Florida for major holidays, including Easter, and he attended a Christmas Eve service last year at Family Church in West Palm Beach before the onset of the pandemic. As the virus forced most churches to pause in-person services this spring, Trump announced plans to tune into live-streamed worship led by some leading evangelical supporters, including Texas-based megachurch pastor Robert Jeffress’ Easter service and a March service by Georgia-based pastor Jentezen Franklin. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Big turnout as early in-person voting starts in Georgia
The chance to cast ballots on Georgia’s first day of in-person early voting Monday had thousands of people waiting for hours to make their voices heard. Eager voters endured waits of six hours or more in Cobb County, which was once solidly Republican but has voted for Democrats in recent elections, and joined lines that wrapped around polling places in solidly Democratic DeKalb County. They also turned out in big numbers in north Georgia’s Floyd County, where support for President Donald Trump is strong. With record turnout expected for this year’s presidential election and fears about exposure to the coronavirus, election officials and advocacy groups have been encouraging people to vote early, either in person or by absentee ballot. Many answered the call on Monday, showing up in numbers that overwhelmed some locations. Kai Uchimura, 25, waited more than two hours to cast his ballot at a DeKalb County election site in metro Atlanta, but he said he was heartened by the turnout and didn’t mind the line. “If it’s just volume, the amount of people voting, then I think that’s democracy working,” he said. Cobb County Elections and Registration Director Janine Eveler said the county had prepared as much as much as it could, “but there’s only so much space in the rooms and parking in the parking lot.” “We’re maxing out both of those,” she said. “People are double parking, we have gridlock pretty much in our parking lot,” she added. Hundreds of people slowly moved along a line that snaked back and forth outside Cobb’s main elections office in a suburban area northwest of Atlanta. Good moods seemed to prevail, even though some people said at 1 p.m. that they’d been waiting for six hours. A brief cheer went up when a pizza deliverer handed a pie to someone in line. At least two counties briefly had problems with the electronic pollbooks used to check in voters. The issue ground voting to a halt for a while at State Farm Arena, where the Atlanta Hawks NBA team plays. On-site technicians resolved the problem and the lines soon cleared at the arena, which is Georgia’s largest early voting site, with 300 voting machines. “We’re disappointed that it happened,” Hawks CEO Steve Koonin told reporters, but he noted that there are still plenty of days left. Early in-person voting runs through Oct. 30 in Georgia. Problems with the electronic pollbooks — along with high turnout, the consolidation of polling places, and shortages of poll workers — bedeviled Georgia’s primary in June. The dysfunction renewed questions about Georgia’s ability to conduct fair elections, two years after the state drew heavy scrutiny during a closely watched gubernatorial election that also saw long waits and other problems. While voters must vote at their assigned polling place on Election Day, they can vote at any voting site in their county during early voting. Some people lined up before dawn Monday to be among the first to vote. Turnout also may have also been boosted because Monday is a federal holiday, so more people are off work. Natalie Rawlings, 49, had prepared to vote absentee but didn’t trust the postal service, so she turned in the blank absentee ballot to poll workers before voting in person Monday. She went first to a library in Atlanta, but there was no parking and a long line, so she went to State Farm Arena, where the line didn’t move for 45 minutes. A handful of people left after someone announced that there was a “known software issue” they were hoping to work through. But most stayed. In the end, it took her about an hour and a half to vote. “I’m outside. It’s a nice day. They’re giving water away. There are worse things. And everybody is appropriately socially distanced,” Rawlings said. Rawlings, a Democrat, said she was motivated by the “coarseness” of President Donald Trump’s language and his seeming lack of respect for other branches of government and world leaders: “It’s gotta end.” Election officials also reported long lines in Floyd County, which also had a problem with the electronic pollbooks. That slowed things initially at the county’s two open voting locations, but it was resolved within about an hour, said Robert Brady, the county’s chief election clerk. “Typically in Floyd County, you have a line that lasts five minutes. Today it’s taking up to 30 minutes,” Brady said. “It’s because of the huge — and I’m talking about huge — turnout.” In Macon, Seth Clark arrived to vote at the main election office at about 9:30 a.m. Monday and found a U-shaped line wrapping around the parking lot. It ended up taking him three hours to vote. “I’ve never seen this many people on the first day of early voting,” said Clark, who won the election over the summer to a nonpartisan seat on the Macon-Bibb County commission. The long line was in part caused by coronavirus precautions. People stood six feet apart and wore masks, Clark said. Some brought along folding chairs and books. “It seems to be going smoothly,” Clark said. “It’s just a lot.” With Georgia emerging as a potential battleground, both the Republican and Democratic presidential campaigns sent surrogates to the state Monday. Jill Biden, wife of former vice president and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, planned to appear in DeKalb County with prominent state Democrats before traveling to Columbus to meet with military and veteran families. Meanwhile, Donald Trump Jr. was set to rally Republican voters in Savannah near the coast and Kennesaw, just outside Atlanta. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Joe Biden: Donald Trump ignores pandemic, stokes unrest, solves neither
Joe Biden’s broadsides came a day ahead of his own trip to Kenosha, Wisconsin, where Biden said he wants to help “heal” a city reeling from another police shooting of a Black man.
Democrats make it official, nominate Joe Biden to take on Donald Trump
For Biden, who has spent more than three decades eyeing the presidency, the moment was the realization of a long-sought personal goal.
Bernie Sanders backs Joe Biden as ex-rivals join forces to beat Donald Trump
The backing came less than a week after Sanders ended his presidential campaign.
Jill Biden says American people know Joe Biden isn’t racist
Jill Biden says the American people “didn’t buy” any insinuation during the Democratic presidential debate that her husband, former Vice President Joe Biden, is racist. In an interview that aired Monday on CNN, the former second lady was asked about Sen. Kamala Harris’ comments last month. The California senator started out by saying she didn’t think Joe Biden was racist, but she criticized him for defending his work with segregationist senators and for opposing mandatory busing of students to desegregated public schools.Jill Biden says as soon as she heard the words “I do not believe you are a racist,” she thought, “Uh oh, what’s coming next?” She says, “The American people know Joe Biden. They know his values. They know what he stands for. And they didn’t buy it.” Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Dr. Jill Biden to visit Mobile, give Bishop State commencement speech
Dr. Jill Biden, wife of former Vice President Joe Biden, will deliver the commencement speech at Bishop State Community College’s upcoming graduation ceremony. On Thursday, May 10 at the Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center, Dr. Biden will deliver the speech to the Mobile, Ala. school “I have long said that community colleges are America’s best kept secret,” explained Dr. Biden. “I believe we need to celebrate community colleges – and their students – for who they really are: innovative, inspiring and essential.” During her tenure as Second Lady, Dr. Biden and former President Barack Obama led the first-ever White House Summit on Community Colleges. She also completed a College to Career bus tour across five states to highlight innovative workforce partnerships that kick-start career training. She has visited over fifty community college campuses across America. “Dr. Jill Biden understands the impact community colleges have in providing postsecondary education opportunities in our country,” said Bishop State President Dr. Reginald Sykes. “As a community college instructor, she sees first-hand how our students’ lives are changed by the opportunities two-year colleges provide. We are honored and thrilled to have such a relatable speaker for this year’s commencement.” Dr. Biden is a full-time English instructor at a community college in Virginia. She earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Doctorate in Education from the University of Delaware, and has a Master of Education with a specialty in Reading from West Chester University and a Master of Arts degree in English from Villanova University. Bishop State Community College’s 2018 Spring Commencement will take place Thursday, May 10, 2018 at 6 p.m. at the Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center.
Birmingham resident featured in Lifetime’s Veteran’s Day ‘Women of Honor’ special
Kathleen “Kat” Causey, a Birmingham resident is one of three amazing and heroic military caregivers that will be featured in the upcoming Veteran’s Day special on Lifetime, “Women of Honor.” Scheduled to air Nov. 9 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT the hour-long program showcases the emotional and uplifting journeys of Causey, Rolona Brown and Jennifer Madden, who represent the thousands of veterans, spouses, caregivers and countless others who have given so much for our country and continue to do so every day. Kat’s story began in 2011. As she prepared to finish her college degree, her husband of just eighteen months, Army Sergeant 1st Class Aaron Causey, was serving in Kandahar, Afghanistan. On Sept. 7, while performing a routine explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) Aaron stepped on an IED, an improvised explosive device and was catastrophically injured. The explosion left him as a double-above-knee amputee and with multiple injuries to his hands and arms, as well as a traumatic brain injury. It was moment that changed Kat and Aaron’s lives forever. While Aaron spent the next two years recovering at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Kat spent her days not only supporting him, but also volunteering with the USO and sharing her experience as a young caregiver spouse with others, inspiring those around her throughout the difficult recovery process. First lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden will also be featured in the special. “Jill and I are really excited about this conversation and we’re excited that Lifetime is putting the spotlight on these amazing women,” said Michelle Obama. The special will also air the day after Veteran’s Day, Nov. 10 at 6:00 p.m. (CET/JKT) on AFN|spectrum for our U.S. forces, DoD civilians and their families stationed or deployed overseas and aboard U.S. Navy ships. Watch a promo of the special here.
Navy ship christened in Alabama for former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords
Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle “Gabby” Giffords of Arizona had a Navy vessel named in her honor during a ceremony at a Mobile, Alabama, shipyard Saturday afternoon. Giffords joined others including Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, as the USS Gabrielle Giffords was christened in coastal Alabama. The 419-foot ship was built at the Austal shipyard and is the Navy’s 10th littoral combat ship designed to operate in shallow waters near the coast. Giffords was badly wounded in a 2011 shooting that left six dead and 13 injured in Tucson. The Democrat left Congress and later founded an organization that supports gun control. “In congress I was proud to support our armed forces. I love the Navy — I even married a sailor,” Giffords said as she kissed her husband Mark Kelly, a retired Navy captain and astronaut who stood by as she addressed the crowd. “Thank you to all who built this ship. She’s stealthy; she will defend freedom around the world.” Giffords was chosen as the vessel’s namesake because of the characteristics she exemplified after the attack, officials said. “Courage comes in many, many forms — physical, mental, spiritual and political. Gabby has truly modeled courage and resilience,” said Vice Admiral Philip Cullom, deputy chief of Naval operations for fleet readiness and logistics. Biden was the ship’s sponsor and Cullom said her spirit will guide the vessel while it is in service. Biden called the ship a feat of engineering excellence. During his speech, Kelly paused to thank Biden for attending the ceremony as she mourns the death of her stepson former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden. Biden, a Delaware National Guard major who spent a year in Iraq and was awarded a Bronze Star, died May 30 after a two-year battle with brain cancer. “Know that Beau was the kind of person that made us all deeply hopeful for our country’s future. He did that for Gabby and for me,” Kelly said. “As a military mom, there is no one I would rather be with than you here today, the ones who stepped up to serve,” Biden said, also adding, “Gabby represents the same qualities the Navy embodies.” Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
