WASHINGTON, DC — US President
Joe Biden on Friday predicted a final-hour shift in favor
of the Democratic Party in the midterm elections, saying that the economy, seen
as the party’s weakest issue, is steadily improving.
اضافة اعلان
“It’s been back and
forth, with them ahead, us ahead, them ahead, back and forth,” Biden told
reporters at the White House, three weeks before elections deciding control of
Congress.
“Polls have been
all over the place. I think we’re going to see one more shift back to our side
in the closing days,” Biden said.
Recent polls show
momentum rising on the Republican side, with voters increasingly anxious about
high inflation and likely to punish the Democrats on November 8.
Biden’s party
currently has a razor-thin majority in Congress but
Republican leaders say they
will block his legislation if they take over the legislature.
Biden, however,
maintained an upbeat outlook, also telling MSNBC in an interview late Friday
that he intends to seek a second term in 2024, despite already being the oldest
person ever in his office. He turns 80 next month.
“I have not made
that formal decision but it’s my intention, my intention to run again, and we
have time to make that decision,” Biden told MSNBC.
Asked what the
first lady, who is widely judged to be a powerful voice behind the scenes in
the White House, thinks of him seeking a second term, Biden indicated she was
in favor.
“Dr Biden, my wife,
thinks that we’re doing something very important and that I shouldn’t walk away
from it,” he said.
‘Crash’ the economy
In fiery remarks predicting that the Republican Party would “crash the
economy” if they are in charge of Congress, Biden said voters were starting to
see “some good news in the economy” and would return to supporting Democrats in
time for voting day.
Biden listed
gradually falling gasoline prices, low unemployment across most of the country,
and Friday’s news of “the largest-ever decline in the federal deficit” as
examples.
The deficit
reduction is “further proof that we’re rebuilding the economy in a responsible
way,” he said.
Republicans, he
said, will eliminate the minimum tax rate for big corporations and “double
down” on tax cuts for the most wealthy.
Referring to former
president Donald Trump’s far-right Make America Great Again or MAGA movement,
Biden said the Republican economic plan was “mega-MAGA trickle-down” economics
— “the kind of policies that have failed the country before and will fail
again.”
The Republicans
quickly shot back, citing Biden’s “flailing dishonesty”.
“Republican-led
states continue to keep Americans working, children in schools, and small
businesses operating, while Biden and Democrats created a recession, historic
inflation and high gas prices. This election is about the economy,” Republican
National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement.
In a speech to mostly African American students at
Delaware State University in his home state, also Friday, Biden highlighted two
recent widely popular measures that the
White House says show the president
keeping his own election promises.
A ruling to forgive
$10,000 of university student loans — $20,000 for poorer students — will “make
sure you have a shot,” Biden said.
Referring to
Republican opposition, Biden underlined his populist message, insisting “I will
never apologize for helping working and middle-class Americans.”
The Democrat also
touted his decision to pardon thousands of Americans convicted of marijuana
possession — a longtime demand of Black rights activists who point out the
disproportionate impact of criminalizing possession of cannabis on Black
people.
“I’m keeping my
promise that no one, no one should be in jail for barely using or possessing
marijuana,” he said.
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