President Joe Biden told attendees of the South Carolina Democratic Party’s “First in the Nation dinner” on Saturday that they were to blame for his election to the White House in 2020 and the ouster of former President Donald Trump.
Biden’s comments, delivered just a week before Democrats vote in the first party-sanctioned No. 1 ballot of the 2024 election cycle, capped a whirlwind week of campaigning by several of the president’s most sensible surrogates, adding Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA). Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison and Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), co-chair of Biden’s reelection effort.
The president opened his speech by thanking South Carolina voters, without whom he “wouldn’t be here,” before calling Trump a loser.
“If you ever doubt that the strength to replace America is in your hands, this: You’ve proven it,” he said. “You are the explanation of why I am president. You are the explanation of why Kamala Harris is a historical figure. “vice president, and you are the explanation for why Donald Trump is a defeated former president. You are the explanation for why Donald Trump is a loser.
Biden interrupted shortly thereafter through a series of protesters calling for an early ceasefire in Gaza, a developing trend at the president’s political rallies. However, the activists were temporarily drowned out by the “four more years” slogans coming from others in the room. A third protester also interrupted the president as he was wrapping up his speech.
The president’s speech continued by criticizing the most likely Republican presidential candidate, saying the electorate is “tired of being taken for an idiot” by Trump on the economy.
“At the end of the day, our economy has grown more in the last six months than at any time in Trump’s four years in office,” Biden said, referring to the gross domestic product report that showed a 2. 5% expansion in 2023.
Throughout his remarks, Biden continued what might become a mainstay of his reelection bid: touting his record in office and leading supporters in a chant of “a promise made, and a promise kept!”
Saturday’s speech also included some of the most virulent attacks on Trump’s intellectual fitness that Biden has launched to date. Biden, 81, recounted a recent gaffe Trump made on the campaign trail.
“By the way, have you noticed it’s a little small those days?” Biden told the crowd. “It’s said he can’t tell Nikki Haley and Nancy Pelosi apart. “
In addition to criticizing Trump’s edgy comments about World War II veterans, Biden attacked him for recently saying he expected the economy to collapse before the election and responded with a new nickname that “Donald ‘Herbert Hoover’ Trump” is just one of two presidents who left with fewer jobs than when he arrived.
“My friends, there are facts and there are lies. Lies told by proxy. Lies told for profit. We will have to denounce those lies with a transparent and unwavering voice,” Biden concluded, referring to Trump’s false claims about the 2020 election. “We will have to stay true to the facts and triumph over lies, and when we do, we will be able to look back and say anything that few people have been able to say. When American democracy was in jeopardy, we stockpiled Are You With Me?Let’s finish what we started.
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), Biden’s longtime rival for the Democratic nomination, spoke at Saturday’s dinner.
Phillips opened his speech by joking that 95% of South Carolina Democrats will vote for Biden, “including most of you in this room,” before urging the president to “pass the torch to a new generation fit to take the stage. “
“A lot of other people in this country, in this state, in this very room have been ordered to stand in line and wait their turn,” Phillips said. “Not in America, when a guy like Donald Trump comes back to the White House. “I love you all, and no matter what, whether it’s President Biden, me, or November, we want to do everything we can to energize, mobilize, and get other people to vote.
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The presidential crusade has seen the Palmetto state as an opportunity for Biden to reinvigorate a Democratic base, and the black electorate in particular, which appears to be deteriorating due to Biden’s age and economic management, even as the Republican electorate supports Trump.
“President Biden and Vice President Harris have provided a historic $7 billion investment for HBCUs, driven Black unemployment to an all-time high, increased Black wealth by as much as 60% since before the pandemic, and so much more,” said Biden’s deputy crusade director. Said. Quentin Fulks said in a statement. Our message is clear: we will not take any voter for granted and we will run, invest and win each and every vote to win in November. “