Biden Says Trump ‘Just Doesn’t Care’ About Americans’ Economic Hardships Amid COVID

Democratic presidential hopeful former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 10, 2020. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden on Friday accused President Donald Trump of being apathetic toward the economic hardships millions of Americans are suffering due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Donald Trump’s malpractice during this pandemic has made being a working American a life or death work,” Biden declared in his speech on the flailing economy.

The former vice president ripped Trump’s aggressive push for the country to reopen without providing health guidance or economic protections for workers.

Biden also noted that although unemployment rate dropped in August, “the economic pain remains unrelenting for millions of working people of every race and background that aren’t getting the relief they need.”

“The painful truth is we just have a president that just doesn’t see it. He doesn’t feel it. He doesn’t understand,” Biden said. “He just doesn’t care.”

“He thinks that if the stock market is up, then everything’s fine. If his wealthy friends and donors are doing well, then everything is doing well,” the candidate continued.

Near the end of the speech, Biden briefly mentioned his “Build Back Better” plan and said that he’d be “laying out the sharp contrast” between his plan and Trump’s “non-plans” over the next three weeks.

“I’ll be asking the American people three basic questions: Who can handle the pandemic? Who can keep their promises? And who cares about, and will fight for, working families?” Biden said.

The Democrat’s speech came several hours after the Labor Department released a monthly jobs report that showed unemployment had dropped from 10.2 percent to 8.4 percent in August, but also that job growth had slowed from the previous month.

Watch him speak below below:

Latest News
Comments
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: