Mr. Biden good afternoon, folks. Sorry im a little late. I was a mesmerized. I was walking out of the office, that listening to an interview of former general Barry Mccaffrey and bill cohen, former secretary of defense. Before i begin, i want to speak a little bit to what they talked about and the revelations about President Trumps disregard for our military and our veterans. Quite frankly, if what is written in the atlantic is true, its disgusting. It affirms what most of us believe to be true, that donald trump is not fit to do the job of president , to be the commanderinchief. The president reportedly said, and i emphasize reportedly, said that those who sign up to serve, instead of doing something more lucrative, are suckers. Let me be real clear. When my son was an assistant u. S. Attorney and he volunteered to go to kosovo, when the war is going on as a civilian, he wasnt a sucker. When my son volunteered and joined the United States military as the attorney general and went to iraq for a year, won the bronze star and other commendations, he wasnt a sucker. The service men and women he served with, particularly those who did not come home, were not losers. If these statements are true, the president should humbly apologize to every gold star mother and father and every Blue Star Family that hes denigrated and insulted. Who the heck does he think he is . Is it true . Well, weve heard from his own mouth his characterizations of an american hero, john mccain, as a loser in 2015. Donald trump said he was not a war hero. I like people who werent captured. Well, good for him. And his dismissal of the traumatic brain injury suffered by troops serving in iraq as mere headaches not too long ago. He stood by failing, failing to take action or even raise the issue with Vladimir Putin while the kremlin puts bounties on the heads of american troops in afghanistan. Its a sacred duty, and youre tired of hearing me say this, those of you whove been covering me for years know. I get in trouble for saying it, but im going to say it again. We have many obligations as a government. We only have one truly sacred obligation. Equipped and support those who we send into harms way, care for their families while theyre gone, and care for them when they are home. Thats the only truly sacred obligation the government has. Duty, honor, country. These are values that drive our service members. Its an all voluntary outfit. President trump is demonstrated he has no sense of service, no loyalty to any cause other than himself. If i have the honor of being the next commanderinchief, i will ensure that our american heroes know ill have their backs, honor their sacrifice. And those whove been injured will be in military parades. Im always cautioned not to lose my temper. This may be as close as i come in this campaign. Just a marker of how deeply President Trump and i disagree about the role of the president of the United States of america. You know the august jobs report came out this morning. And im grateful for everyone who found work again and found a glimmer of hope that brings them back from the edge, but there is real cause for concern as well. The pace of the job gains in august was slower than july, significantly slower than in may and june. More and more temporary layoffs are turning into permanent layoffs. 28 Million People filed for unemployment. And after six months in the pandemic, were less than halfway back to where we were with 11 million, 11. 5 million americans not getting their jobs back. Were still down 720,000 manufacturing jobs. In fact, donald trump may be the only president of modern history to leave office with fewer jobs than when he took office. Ive talked to a lot of real working people, ask them. They feel like theyre being left behind. Ask them, how do they feel about the economy coming back . Youll find they dont feel it. And thats why im here today, to thank Paul Calistro and his team for hosting us at west end Neighborhood House here in wilmington. Paul, your continued tradition of doing gods work through this community is important. Its been around for more than 130 years. Through pandemics, wars, depressions. West end has been here for generations of people who are just looking for a chance, not a handout. Just a fair shot at a good job, a safe place to live, and a better life to pass down to their kids. This is a special place for the biden family. My daughter, ashley, a social worker, was a caseworker here helping young people who are aging out of foster care. When my son was the attorney general, beau came here, right here, to learn more about job Training Programs for those working toward a ged and a certificate for a good paying job. When i was senator and Vice President , there were plenty of economists i had around me to talk about every aspect of the economy. But i always think about the people who walked through the doors here. Working people, white, black, brown, latino. What are they doing . Are they ok . I knew if theyre ok, they walk through these doors, the economy was doing ok. If they werent ok, we werent doing well. Joe biden, thats what we should be thinking about is this latest jobs report. But the report reinforces the worst fears and painful truths. The economic inequities that began before the downturn have only worsened under this failed presidency. When the crisis started, we all hope for a few months of a shutdown would be followed by a rapid economic turnaround. No one thought theyd lose their job for good or see Small Businesses shut down en masse. But that kind of recovery requires leadership, leadership we didnt have and still dont have. And as a result, economists are starting to call this recession a kshaped recession, which is a fancy phrase for whats wrong with everything about trumps presidency. The k means those at the top are seeing things go up. And those in the middle and below are seeing things go down and get worse. Its no surprise because at root of this is the fact that trump has mismanaged the covid crisis. And thats why its a kshaped pandemic. First, the president s chaotic mismanagement of the pandemic is Still Holding us back. Compared to other Major Industrial countries in europe and asia, during the pandemic, our Unemployment Rate is still more than double, while other nations have only gone up by half. Why . Because the president has botched the covid response, botched it badly. Ive said from the beginning we cant deal with an economic crisis until you beat the pandemic. You cant have an economic comeback when almost 1000 americans die each day from covid, when the death toll was reached about 200,000, when more than 6 million americans have been infected, when million more worry about getting sick and dying, and schools and businesses try to reopen. We all know it didnt have to be this bad. It didnt have to be this bad to begin with if the president just did his job, if he just took the virus seriously early on in january and february as it spread around the globe, if he just took the steps we needed back in march and april, institute widespread testing and tracing to control the virus, if he provided clear national scientificbased guidance to state and local authorities, if he just set a good example like social distancing and wearing a mask. Its not too much to ask. Its almost like he doesnt care. It doesnt affect him because it doesnt affect him or his class of friends. Anyone with a big enough checkbook can get rapid tests on demand. If you dont, you might have to wait in line for hours and wait for weeks to get your result, if you can get them at all. You have the kind of job where you can work from a laptop at home remotely, risking getting covid is very small at work. This job report shows that 37 Million People reported teleworking in august. But if you work in an Assembly Line or check out counter or a meat packing plant or drive a truck or deliver packages, youre at much greater risk. And the job report shows that more than 27 million workers reported that they couldnt work or lost hours because their employer had to close or lost business due to the pandemic. If you can hire a private tutor or have a livein childcare, you can balance being a parent and remote schooling. If you cant, you have to do your job and be a teacher all at once. Jill and i have held briefings on reopening School Safety two days ago, asking the question as we hear so many parents call and ask us, educators as well who feel like theyre in an impossible situation. What are they supposed to do with our children when the president has made it so hard for schools to reopen safely . Whats the alternative when its devastating to keep them isolated from their friends and their support systems . I also said earlier this week, to the shock of many, we have lost more cops this year to covid than on patrol. Just a reminder how an already dangerous job, law enforcement, has gotten more dangerous because of trumps mismanagement. What may be just as shocking is many other jobs have also become dangerous due to covid. Being a Healthcare Worker is now more dangerous than ever. Weve lost hundreds of them this year because they werent protected from covid on the job. Being a meat packer is more dangerous than ever. So many have died due to getting covid at work. Work for waitresses and waiters and transit workers all have become more dangerous, with so many dying of covid. Ladies and gentlemen, no matter what he says or what he claims, you are not safer in Donald Trumps america. Youre not safe in Donald Trumps america where people are dying at a rate last seen when americans were fighting in world war ii. Donald trumps malpractice during this pandemic has made being a working american a life or death work. And while there is a disproportionate impact on black, latino, and Asian Americans and native americans working class communities, White Working Class communities are being hit hard as well. Opioid deaths, for example, are up during the pandemic. Another crisis that trump continues to all but ignore. In the meantime, trump and his friends have strong views about what the rest of america should do. Quote, cut Unemployment Benefits to force people to go back to their jobs, end of quote. Defund Social Security and eliminate obamacare in the middle of a pandemic, end of quote. Reopen Public Schools without resources or guidance. Reopen main street business without protection for workers so corporations can continue to soar. This is their plan . Joe biden, second and similarly, the economic pain remains unrelenting for millions of working people of every race and background arent getting relief they need. Meanwhile, wealthy are doing just fine, some better than ever. This divergence in fortunes is unique to any recession in recent memory. And the painful truth is we just have a president who just doesnt see it. He doesnt feel it. He doesnt understand. He just doesnt care. He thinks if the stock market is up, then everythings fine. If his wealthy friends and donors are doing well, then everythings doing well. If corporations see their valuations rising, then they must be hiring. But the best economists know what i know. I have learned growing up in scranton and claymont, delaware up the road, places where folks arent invested in the market like wealthy americans. A measure of our economic success is the quality of life of the American People. And if your stocks soar as families teeter on the brink of hunger and homelessness and our president calls that success, what does that say about what he values . When you see the world in such a narrow prism, its no wonder he doesnt see nearly 30 million americans on unemployment, one in six Small Businesses that closed right now. He doesnt understand what life is like for people walking by their boarded up shops, educators afraid that doing their job, that job they love, will bring the virus home to the people they love, or of parents searching for Health Insurance now that the furlough has turned into a layoff. Its no wonder he doesnt see the single mom forced to wait in the 3 hour food line so for the first time in her life, so she can feed her family because shes now part of the one in six households with children that dont have enough to eat. He wants us to believe that were doing better, to keep it up and not notice that this remains the worst Economic Situation since the Great Depression and our country face the historic divergence in our way of life. Which gets me to my third and final point and what the American People really need to understand, all the pain and suffering stems from President Trumps failure to lead, his sheer inability and willingness to bring people together, he likes to sign executive orders, actions for photo ops, but theyre illconceived and could do more harm than good. He says, protecting renters from eviction, thats what hes doing, but hes not giving them any support to pay the rent when it comes due. Millions of americans, all will be left with a terrible choice between eviction and living in the streets or paying back rent they simply dont have when there was an answer offered and rejected. He says hes continuing to provide enhanced Unemployment Insurance payments, but he cut the amount that everyone on it receive, leaves them on the edge when it runs out in a few weeks or sooner. Joe biden, he should be doing his job of calling congressional leaders together immediately to get a deal and deliver real results for the American People. This is the first president in the middle of a crisis ive never seen has called congress into the oval office. If i were president , thats what id do and id get it done like previous president s. Rentals, food, unemployment assistance, tens of millions struggling americans, student loan reliefs, Small Business support, and aid to schools and state governments that are going bankrupt. And as long as this pandemic and the accompanying economic catastrophe persist, no one should have their water or power cut off because they cant afford to pay the bill. Bottom line, mr. President , do your job, get off your golf course and out of the sand bunker, call the leaders together in the oval office, sit with them and make a deal. Make a deal that delivers for working americans and eases their anxiety and pain. In july, i laid out my build back better plan for an economy that works for everyone. Over the next 3 weeks ill be laying out the sharp contrast my plan has with the president s nonplans. Ill be asking American People three basic questions, who can handle a pandemic . Who can keep their promises . And who cares about and will fight for working families . Like the people here at west end, throughout this pandemic, they found their way to keep the center open safely and provide for critical services. No one here has been laid off. They adjusted their spaces for social distancing. They started a Lending Program to help local businesses, hair salons, and other Small Businesses. They continue their childcare services, which is critical for so many working families. By pure courage, heart, and grit, they never give up and they never give in and they pursue the full promise for america. Thats the story of the people of this community and this country, thats who we are. Give ordinary american just half a chance and they never let the country down, theyll do extraordinary things, theyll never let us down unlike the current president. And unlike the current president i wont let you down either, thats what this election is about, helping people unite, get together, move this country back in the direction that we can be, theres nothing beyond our capacity, nothing, if we just do it together. Thank you all, and i now take your questions. I guess, are you calling on people or how am i, i dont have a list, so you go ahead and call. Ok. President trumps life is a testimony to selfishness and his soul is that of a coward. Can you talk about how you see the job as president . When you see these remarks of losers, suckers, recoiling from amputees, what does that tell you about President Trumps soul and the life he leads . Trying to beam measured in my response. If it is true, it based on everything he said i believe the article is true, and ask you a rhetorical question. How do you feel . How would you feel if you had a kid in afghanistan right now . If you lost afeel son, daughter, husband, wife, how would you feel . For real . I know thats not your job to express that feeling, but you know, you know when your heart, you know in your gut its deplorable. Its deplorable. As ive said many times and i folks aregain, these the backbone of america. They are the heart, the soul, the grit. That is what patriotism is about. Probably i have just never been as disappointed in my whole with a leader that i worked with, president or otherwise. If the article is true, and it appears to be based on everything hes said, it is absolutely damming. It is a disgrace. Topic, somewhat related what would you say to the supporters of the people who conspiracy,he qanon what they think about america, that there is sex trafficking and conspiracy i guess president tomp, and what would you say President Trump for not rejecting that conspiracy and the people who believe it . i have been a big supporter of mental health, and i recommend people who believe it may take advantage of it while it still exists