Joe Biden, harsh attack on Trump: “You are behaving in a way that embarrasses us as a nation”
Former president Joe Biden harshly criticized his successor at the White House on Friday, claiming, at an event organized by the Democratic Party, that Donald Trump “destroyed” democracy, reports CNN, taken over by News.ro.
“I knew Trump was going to destroy the country, but I have to admit I had no idea it was going to be a literal demolition,” Biden said at a gala in Omaha organized by the Nebraska Democratic Party, referring to Trump's demolition of the East Wing of the White House to build an 8,361-square-foot ballroom.
(The wrecking ball) “is a perfect symbol of his presidency,” Biden said. “Trump destroyed not only a house of the people, but also the Constitution, the rule of law and our democracy itself,” the former president pointed out.
“You work for us, not just for millionaires”
Biden also poked fun at Trump's repeated claims that his second term would bring “a golden age” to the country. “Now he says we're, quote, 'in a golden age.' The only gold is the one he hung on the mantelpiece,” the former president said, referring to the gilded ornaments Trump brought to the Oval Office.
During the speech, Biden also addressed Trump directly: “To be honest, you're behaving in a way that embarrasses us as a nation,” he told him.
He also criticized Trump for prioritizing the interests of his wealthy allies over the American people. “You work for us, Mr. President. We don't work for you. You work for us, not just billionaires and millionaires,” Biden said, confessing, “I'm furious.”
The former president also spoke about his prostate cancer diagnosis, just a few weeks after completing a series of radiation therapy sessions. Biden linked his personal experience with the disease to the importance of medical care. “I thank God for doctors and nurses and for the incredible progress we are making in cancer research,” Biden said. “Now, Trump and his Republican friends are cutting government funding for health care and making it more expensive, more expensive for almost everyone,” Biden said.
The statements of the former president come in the context in which the country is in the longest shutdown in history, the impasse being centered around the issue of subsidies for medical assistance. Democrats are refusing to support the Republicans' bill to fund the government because it does not extend subsidies enhanced by the Affordable Care Act, which is set to expire at the end of the year.
Appeal to Democrats
Biden also commented on the Democrats' landslide victory in Tuesday's election, loudly exclaiming: “The Democratic Party is back!”
Democrats won across the board on Tuesday, with Zohran Mamdani elected mayor of New York City, while Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill won gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey, respectively. In California, a Democratic-backed redistricting measure was also approved by voters.
Biden says these victories demonstrate that “the American people are sending a message to Trump and his supporters” denouncing his administration's policies.
Biden continued to emphasize the fragility of democracy and urged supporters in the room to “make an effort” to defend it. “Democracy is not a guaranteed thing,” Biden emphasized. “Nothing is guaranteed in democracy, not even in America. You have to make an effort. We have to elect leaders who believe in democracy, who support it, who defend it, who protect it,” he pleaded. “I know this nation. I know the American people. And this is what I know: No one, absolutely no one, not even the president, can destroy our democracy if we stand together and fight for it,” he later added.
