Joe Biden dispatched to Ohio to make middle class campaign pitch
Updated at 12:22 p.m. ET
As President Obama's re-election campaign begins to reach out to voters, Vice President Joe Biden will take up the special task of winning over the middle class. In the first in a series of speech he plans to give on the economy in the coming weeks, Biden delivered remarks today tailored to auto industry workers in the swing state of Ohio.
At the United Auto Workers Local 12 Hall in Toledo, Ohio, the vice president argued that Mr. Obama made a tough choice, but the right one, when he backed the government bailout of the auto industry.
"He knew rescuing the industry wasn't popular. He knew he was taking a chance. But he believed," Biden said. "He said, we are not going to give up on a million jobs, and the iconic industry America invented. Not without a fight."
The auto industry is a central part of Ohio's economy, and the bailout -- which all of the Republican presidential candidates opposed -- gives the Obama campaign a clear illustration of the differences between the two sides. The Obama campaign is seeking to cast the 2012 election as a stark choice between a governing philosophy that favors the middle class versus one that favors the rich.
"Simply stated, we're about promoting the private sector," Biden said. "They're about protecting the privileged sector. We are for a fair shot and a fair shake; they're about no rules, no risks and no accountability."
Specifically calling out Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum, Biden said, "If you give any one of these guys the keys to the White House, they will bankrupt the middle class again."
The vice president went through the GOP arguments for opposing the bailout, including the argument that the private sector could have loaned General Motors and Chrysler money.
"Any honest expert wll tell you in 2009 no one was lining up to lend GM money, or for that matter, to lend money to anybody -- that includes Bain Capital," Biden said, taking a jab at Romney, the former head of Bain Capital.
Biden refuted the claim that Ford would have filled the holes left in the industry by GM or Chrysler's demise, citing remarks from Ford's CEO. He also dismissed the notion that the bailout was a "payoff to special interests" -- a quote he attributed to Santorum.
"Gingrich, Romney and Santorum -- they don't let the facts get in their way," he said, hailing the sacrifices UAW workers made, such as accepting wage freezes.
Biden tapped into his relatively modest background as he stood before the Toledo auto workers. He recalled that when his father managed a car dealership, he would borrow cars to take girlfriends to the prom. "It's good to have a dad in the automobile business, man," he said.
He also said his father taught him the true value of a job -- noting that the auto industry has gained 200,000 jobs since the industry rescue plan was enacted, after losing 400,000 before Mr. Obama took office.
"That's 200,0000 people who had their dignity returned to them... and a paycheck you can raise your family on," he said.
The vice president's speeches are one in a series of steps the campaign is rolling out to reach out to voters. Additionally, the campaign today is releasing a 17-minute documentary-style film called the "Road We've Traveled," which explores the challenges Mr. Obama faced when he took office and the progress made since then. The film was directed by award-winning director Davis Guggenheim and is narrated by Tom Hanks.
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Obama/Biden will NEVER get my vote!
For those who seem to be proud of supporting any candidate other than Paul, make sure you know what you are really voting for:
- Romney, creator of Obam-ney care and who continuously flip-flops on every issue - where does he really stand? Supports Patriot Act, TSA, NDAA. Remember, there is a BIG difference between Pro-small/medium business, and Pro-Conglomerate Special Interest.
- Gingrich, like Obama, believes OUR Constitution should be "replaced". A moon "colony" by 2020? Supports Patriot, TSA, NDAA.
- Santorum, supports Patriot, TSA, NDAA. Votes against the Constitution. Voted to raise the debt ceiling 5 times, and listed by CREW as one of the top CORRUPT U.S. Senators, said out of his own mouth, if you want less intrusive government, "Vote for Ron Paul"
And if you haven't heard just recently, all of these candidates are now taking veteran Ron Paul's position on foreign policy! Poll after national poll, Ron Paul, based upon his solid Constitutional voting record, is the ONLY candidate who can go head to head against Obama. Contrary to misleading mainstream media reporting (owned by international interests), Ron Paul IS winning the delegates. Vote for Ron Paul 2012!
This is the biggest load of crap that Bidden has ever promoted! The stinking health care alone disproves this nonsense!
Has the disastrous health care law helped middle income Americans, with it's fees on medical devices? This horrible law has resulted in the private health care insurance premiums of middle income Americans to rise.
How does the crippling health care law regulations and and expenses on private sector businesses promote private sector businesses? This the most shocking lie Bidden has ever promoted!
How does adding more regulations on US energy production in oil and coal help middle income Americans? It causes the cost to be passed down to consumers. The rising gas prices are causing prices of everything transported by fossil fuel to rise for all Americans, including the poor and middle income Americans. The record breaking deficit spending by President Obama is devaluing the US dollar and causing inflation - the cost of living is going up for all Americans, including the poor and middle income Americans.
"Politico: By ALEX GUILLEN | 2/28/12 6:37 PM EST
The Energy Department isn't working to lower gasoline prices directly, Secretary Steven Chu said Tuesday after a Republican lawmaker scolded him for his now-infamous 2008 comment that gas prices in the U.S. should be as high as in Europe.
Instead, DOE is working to promote alternatives such as biofuels and electric vehicles, Chu told House appropriators during a hearing on DOE's budget."
If Americans want to know why we are going to be stuck with massive oil price increases this summer, we have to look no farther than President Obama's administration. High gas prices don't just slam people at the pump, every product that is transported by fossil fuel will have to include the increased transportation cost in the prices in the stores. This will hit the poor and middle income Americans very hard, and it will hurt those on fixed incomes (the elderly) the worst. Not only that, vacations will be cut - nailing the crap out of states that depend on tourism. High gas prices will cut the legs out from under the small amount of recovery that we have experienced.
In an interview Barrack Obama did with the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board very early in the presidential campaign, January 2008 - he said the following:
"Under my plan of a cap-and-trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Coal-powered plants, you know, natural gas, you name it, whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers."
Does this sound like someone who is concerned with Americans suffering under the weight of high energy costs? NO. President Obama is a radical extremist with a consuming ideology that outweighs any concern that he has for suffering Americans. He has a dreamed up personal "vision" that he wants for America, and he does not care who gets hurt - as long as he can bring his own personal vision to pass. Does this sound like a President who really cares about the American people? NO
Where is the press when left wing politicians spew pure lies? Do any of them have any credibility at all anymore? How can they be so blatantly bias as to stay silent in the face of pure lies? Have they all become doormats for progressive thought, to the point that they are totally sold out? Wow!