Offline
Biden banks on Pennsylvania to frame 2020 ‘unity’ pitch
The former vice president’s 2020 kickoff rally in Philadelphia, where he is opening his campaign headquarters, highlighted ties to the state where he was born — and a state critical to the general election.
PHILADELPHIA — Joe Biden is betting on Pennsylvania.
He was born in Scranton, earned the nickname of “Pennsylvania’s third senator” while serving in the Senate, and will base his campaign headquarters in Philadelphia.
As he capped a three-week campaign launch tour with a rally Saturday in Philadelphia, Biden said he chose to be here for a reason.
"Why do we begin in this place, Philadelphia?” Biden asked a crowd of thousands of supporters. “This was the birthplace of our democracy.”
If Biden were to become the Democratic nominee for president, Pennsylvania could be crucial in taking back the White House from Republicans. President Donald Trump narrowly won Pennsylvania in 2016, a feat that helped him smash through the Democratic “blue wall” in industrial states and secure a majority of electoral college votes.
The former vice president is quickly making inroads here. He not only is headquartered in Philadelphia, but made his first official campaign appearance at a union hall in Pittsburgh and hosted a big-donor fundraiser in Philadelphia.
Biden recited the famous words from the Declaration of Independence, “we hold these truths to be self-evident,” words he said served as a foundation for the American ideals of equality, equity and fairness.
“America didn't live up to that promise for most of the people, for people of color, for women,” Biden said. “But we are born of an idea that every single solitary person in this country — given half a chance no matter where you start in life — there is not a single thing they cannot do if they work at it.”
Early polls are also showing that Biden would beat Trump here in a hypothetical 2020 match-up. In a survey of Pennsylvania voters, Quinnipiac University found that Biden out-polled Trump 53 percent to 42 percent. About 60 percent of registered Democrats in Pennsylvania say that Biden has the best chance of beating Trump, followed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, at 6 percent.
Offline
What will be REALLY interesting IF Biden wins the nomination is WHO he will pick for a running mate.
Offline
Mayor Pete.