Biden campaigns for Democratic candidates in Florida rally - live updates
Former Vice President Joe Biden headlined a get-out-the-vote rally with Democratic candidates in Orlando, Florida, on Tuesday afternoon. Biden has been campaigning for Democratic candidates across the country in the run-up to the midterm election, appearing in Indiana earlier this month to campaign for Sen. Joe Donnelly, and in Nevada over the weekend to stump for Democratic Senate candidate Jacky Rosen.
He is currently completing a campaign swing through Florida, appearing at another rally in at the University of South Florida in Tampa on Monday, where he rallied with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum and Democratic incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson. At that rally, he said that this year's election is "bigger than politics."
"Get the hell up and take back the country. It is about who we are. It is about dreaming again," Biden said, encouraging Floridians to vote. Both Gillum and Nelson are in tight races.
Biden rallied with Nelson, Rep. Stephanie Murphy and Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer on Tuesday. His speech repeated lines from previous rallies, such as the assurance that this election is "bigger than politics," and that "we're in a battle for the soul of America." He also expanded on the difference between Democrats and Republicans in this election, particularly focusing on President Trump's tendency to cosy up to autocrats such as Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un. The crowd in attendance shouted that Mr. Trump was a "traitor."
"America already knows who Donald Trump is. The question is, who are we?" Biden said, presenting the election as an opportunity to make America a global leader again and restore the middle class -- similar arguments to what Mr. Trump makes at his own rallies. Biden said that he is a Democrat because he "cannot stand the abuse of power."
"this president is more like George Wallace than George Washington," Biden said, referring to the Southern governor and segregation advocate, and alluding to Mr. Trump's racially charged rhetoric around the election. "Democrats have to choose hope over fear."