Wes Moore, Joe Biden, Jill Biden and Chris Van Hollen hold hands raised in victory at a rally where they are surrounded by supporters.
In his final speech before the election, the president attacked Republicans on the economy while also sounding optimistic.
On Monday night, Joe Biden rallied with fellow Democrats, delivering a message of optimism and determination in the face of widespread concern about his party’s performance in Tuesday’s midterm elections.
In a speech to a raucous crowd in Maryland, Biden emphasized the importance of the races that will determine control of the US Congress for the next two years. Biden painted a bleak picture of a Republican-controlled Congress, predicting that the opposing party would use its majority to roll back Americans’ rights and dismantle social welfare programs.
“What happens in the next year to three years will shape our lives,” Biden said. “It’s going to shape the next couple of decades.”
Biden reiterated his pledge to protect abortion rights if Democrats expand their congressional majorities, but recent polls show that Americans are currently more focused on economic issues, where Republicans traditionally have a voter advantage. Some Democrats have expressed concern in the final days of campaigning that their candidates have not done enough to address economic anxiety, leaving the party vulnerable to a red wave on Tuesday.
In the face of near-record inflation and fears of a recession, Biden instead used different metrics to defend his administration’s economic agenda, namely the low unemployment rate and the 10 million jobs created since he took office. Noting that Donald Trump was the first president since Herbert Hoover to oversee a job loss, Biden claimed Republicans have no plan to improve the economy.
“Remember, these are the guys who passed the $2 trillion tax cut benefiting the wealthy and big corporations and didn’t pay for a single penny of it,” Biden said, referring to Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
“We’re the ones bringing down the deficit, allowing us to afford to provide ordinary, hardworking Americans a little break.”
Republicans slammed Biden’s closing argument to midterm voters, accusing Democrats of ignoring Americans’ most pressing concerns at a critical juncture in the US economy.
“Our country deserves leaders who take accountability and understand the issues that hardworking families face – Joe Biden and Democrats have only demonstrated that they are out of touch and seek power over people,” Ronna McDaniel, chair of the Republican National Committee, said.
Several Democratic candidates running for office on Tuesday joined Biden at Bowie State University, a historically Black college just outside of Washington. Wes Moore, who will become Maryland’s first Black governor if he wins on Tuesday, introduced Biden.
Given Moore’s impressive polling lead, he appears poised to flip the Maryland governorship to Democratic control after eight years of Republican Larry Hogan’s leadership.
Even with those encouraging signs, Moore emphasized that he is taking nothing for granted in the final hours before polls close.
Moore stated, “The only poll that matters is election day.” “And we’re running like we’re 10 points behind until those polls close tomorrow night.”
Democrats are concerned that Moore’s success will be the exception rather than the rule for their candidates on Tuesday night. Republicans have recently regained their advantage on the generic congressional ballot – a compilation of polls asking respondents which party they’d prefer to control Congress – according to FiveThirtyEight, raising GOP hopes of regaining control of the House. Republican candidates have made similar gains in some key Senate races, raising the prospect of Democrats losing their majorities in both chambers on Tuesday.
In the face of near-record inflation and fears of a recession, Biden instead used different metrics to defend his administration’s economic agenda, namely the low unemployment rate and the 10 million jobs created since he took office. Noting that Donald Trump was the first president since Herbert Hoover to oversee a job loss, Biden claimed Republicans have no plan to improve the economy.
“Remember, these are the guys who passed the $2 trillion tax cut benefiting the wealthy and big corporations and didn’t pay for a single penny of it,” Biden said, referring to Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. “We’re the ones bringing the deficit down, allowing us to afford to give ordinary, hardworking Americans a little something.”
Republicans slammed Biden’s closing argument to midterm voters, accusing Democrats of ignoring Americans’ most pressing concerns at a critical juncture in the US economy.
“Our country deserves leaders who take accountability and understand the issues that hardworking families face – Joe Biden and Democrats have only demonstrated that they are out of touch and seek power over people,” Ronna McDaniel, chair of the Republican National Committee, said.
Several Democratic candidates running for office on Tuesday joined Biden at Bowie State University, a historically Black college just outside of Washington. Wes Moore, who will become Maryland’s first Black governor if he wins on Tuesday, introduced Biden.
Wes Moore, who will become Maryland’s first Black governor if he wins on Tuesday, introduced Biden.
“The only poll that matters is election day,” Moore said. “And we’re acting as if we’re ten points behind until the polls close tomorrow night.”
Democrats are concerned that Moore’s victory will be an outlier rather than the norm for their candidates on Tuesday night. According to FiveThirtyEight, Republicans have recently regained their advantage on the generic congressional ballot – a compilation of polls asking respondents which party they’d prefer to control Congress – raising GOP hopes of regaining control of the House. Republican candidates have made similar gains in key Senate races, raising the possibility that Democrats will lose their majorities in both chambers on Tuesday.
If Republicans retake control of the House and Senate, Democrats will be unable to implement any of their legislative priorities for the next two years. House Republicans have also promised to use their majority power to launch investigations into the Biden administration and bring the work of the select committee investigating the January 6 insurgency to a close as soon as possible.
Biden warned supporters on Monday night that Republican control of Congress could have far-reaching implications for the country’s governing institutions. Hundreds of Republican candidates running for office this year have expressed unfounded doubts about Biden’s 2020 victory, and the president has argued that empowering such election deniers could jeopardize the foundations of American democracy.
“In their opinion, there are only two outcomes to an election.” “One, they either win or they are cheated,” Biden stated. “You can’t love your country only when you win.”
Even as he expressed grave concern about America’s threats, Biden ended his final speech before election day on a hopeful note, indicating confidence that democratic principles would guide voters on Tuesday and help Democrats secure victories across the board.
“I see [a] great nation as I travel this country and the world because I know we’re a good people,” Biden said. “All we have to do is remember who the hell we are.”