Joe Biden Detroit, Michigan Rally Transcript with Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, more

Garlin Gilchrist: (00:00)
Watch how the state of Michigan is about to change the country and change the world. We’re going to have a lot more to say tonight, but I wanted to say thank you for showing up Detroit. Like we always do, let’s stand tall and let’s win over here tomorrow. All right?

Speaker 1: (10:11)
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome [Sade 00:10:11] Reed, senior class president of Renaissance High School and Valedictorian. And also, please rise for our pledge of allegiance.

Sade Reed: (10:40)
Good evening. My name is Sade Reed, I am the senior class president as well as valedictorian here at Renaissance. Please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance. So take your right hand and put it on your heart. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you.

Speaker 1: (11:38)
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Mayor of Detroit, Mayor Duggan.

Mike Duggan: (11:38)
All right. Are we ready to hear from the vice president? As many of you know, I signed up for Joe Biden’s campaign the first day he announced for president. Right? And we had some times there where it looked a little rocky. Didn’t it? People said to me, “How come you’re still with him? He’s losing. You should switch.” Here’s what I said, “Here’s what I know, in 2009 when GM and Chrysler were on the verge of bankruptcy and everybody thought they were in trouble, it was Barrack Obama and Joe Biden who went in and fought for us.”

They believed in us. And you know what Joe Biden and I are doing at 9:30 tomorrow? We’re going over to the Fiat Chrysler plant where they’re hiring 5000 new autoworkers in the city of Detroit.

Those 5000 jobs wouldn’t be there if Barrack Obama and Joe Biden hadn’t believed in us. And then New Hampshire came and Iowa came and they said “Joe Biden is going to lose.” Everybody else coming, “Come join our team. Joe Biden can’t win.” I said, “Let me tell you what I know. In 2014 when I became mayor and Detroit was in bankruptcy, Joe Biden came to Detroit every three or four months. He got us new buses. He got us housing. He got us business support.” When the rest of the country had written us off, he was there. And when I went to the White House and sat with President Obama he said, “The only problem I have with Joe is he thinks he’s the vice president of Detroit.” True story.

He was with us every step of the way. And now, are we ready to stand with Joe Biden? I want to bring up somebody else who has beaten all the odds, who has come from the city of Detroit and risen to the highest levels of power, our great congresswoman. Give a great applause for Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence.

Brenda Lawrence: (14:40)
Hello Detroit. The road to the White House runs through where? Michigan. Michigan. We are on board, we are fighting. We understand that the soul of our democracy rests in our hands. I am so excited to be here today.

And men, if you would just allow me a moment to talk to the women in the house. Women, are you in the house? Women, we are the majority of the vote. Are we going to win this race? See women know that the importance of educating our children is so important and they know Joe Biden will make sure a child is educated regardless of their zip code. Women are you with me?

Women, we know that we are the number one caretakers in America. And we know Joe Biden will protect and make Obamacare work for us. Are you with me? And tot he men in the house so you don’t feel bad, every woman in this house needs you to lock arms with us as we fight to bring back democracy to our country. So men, let me hear you, are you ready to fight?

Ooh, I love that bass. I love that bass. We have an opportunity in this state with your vote to bring back something that I believe in so much. You heard the young lady say it, we have an opportunity to have one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all of us. But it only happens when we fight and make that happen. I want you to know that when I stand up and say “I support Joe Biden to be the next President of the United States of America” that I need all hands on deck. I need teachers. I need truck drivers. I need those who are unemployed seeking employment. I need the factory worker. I need the engineer. Are in of y’all in the house? Are there any teachers in the house? Are there any nurses in the house? I need everyone onboard.

As we spread the word and we create this excitement about our democracy, I tell people I’m supporting Joe Biden because he knows me. He knows me. He sees me. He understands that there are those in America who work two jobs just to make a living. He understands that there are those who are caring for a sick child and we need healthcare for all. He understands that Obamacare is one that can work if we didn’t have this administration trying to cut the legs out from under it. We understand that economic development that when we talk about people increasing their wealth and growing in America that no ships are left behind, that we all rise with this tide.

I’m so excited to be here today to say I want you to join arms with me because when we fight? When we fight? When we fight? When we fight? And we will win. Go vote tomorrow, everybody. Thank you.

I now have the pleasure to introduce an amazing young man, a young man who, when he was selected to run on the ticket with our governor, he came to me because I was a Lieutenant governor candidate and I was so proud to talk to him and to nurture him and support him because, you know, I know he stands on my shoulders. He’s brilliant man. He’s an amazing father. He is my Lieutenant governor. He is a man that we in Michigan are so blessed to have. Join me in welcoming our Lieutenant Governor Gilchrist.

He’s upstairs with the vice president so you all just hang loose. He’ll be down in a minute. But I want to know, do we have anyone here from the city of Detroit? The city of Southfield, the Grosse Pointe, Farmington Hills? Oh, here he comes. Bye.

Now y’all heard from me a little bit earlier, but I’ve got to say it one more time, what up though Detroit? My name is Garlin Gilchrist and in case y’all ain’t heard, I live in Detroit and I’m happy to be standing before you as the first black Lieutenant Governor of the state of Michigan.

I’m going to tell y’all why that’s important. Because, in the year 2018, the city of Detroit turned out like it never did for a gubernatorial election. The state of Michigan stepped up like it hadn’t been for a gubernatorial election in more than 40 years. And when we turn out? When we stand tall? When we show up? And when we win we get the most reflective administration that has ever existed in the history of the state of Michigan.

You get a governor like Gretchen Whitmer. For the first time in the history of the state, women have held every executive office. You have an attorney general like Dana Nessel. You have a secretary of state like Jocelyn Benson. You have a Whitmer/Gilchrist administration that appoints the most diverse cabinet and leadership team in the history of the state of Michigan. And that’s important because when we show up [crosstalk 00:22:34] and the people who govern, they actually look like us.

That matters because when you have diversity at the table, you get better decisions. You get stronger consensus. You need to have leadership that is willing to listen to people. Leaders that are willing to bring everyone into the conversation because we don’t have conversations about people, we have conversations with people. We don’t talk about communities, we speak with communities. We don’t act alone because we don’t lead alone. Leadership is not an individual exercise. Leadership is a communal experience where we come together under our best values. We organize our better angels to walk brightly into a better tomorrow.

And we are all here tonight united with a common purpose because we believe that Joe Biden is going to be the best nominee and the next president of the United States.

But the question everybody asks is, “Why should you vote for Joe Biden tomorrow? Why is Joe Biden the best person to lead our party and lead our country?” It’s real simple Detroit. Three Rs. Results, record, and relationship. The three Rs of Joesph R. Biden.

The results, he has shown up in this state time after time, before, during, and beyond election season. He’s delivered for public transportation. He’s delivered for internet access. He’s delivered to expand healthcare. And he has delivered because when the auto industry was down, President Barack Obama said send Joe Biden to Detroit. Send Joe Biden to Michigan to protect the middle class. To undergird the auto industry that is the lifeblood of our state because everybody in here either works in or loves somebody who works in the auto industry. That is the man that we chose to stand tall for the state of Michigan.

I’ve got to be honest with you. All right? Don’t get mad at me. Don’t get mad at me. In 2016, I voted for Bernie Sanders. Now look, now look, I’m sad that somebody booed about that. That’s what happened in 2016, but the question is, what’s different? What’s different? The difference is, nobody with the record, results, and relationships of Joe Biden was on the ballot. And what we need in 2020 is somebody that’s going to have a vision that includes all of us.

Because we are a broad, diverse, beautiful people, where everybody’s opinion matters. And when Joe Biden looks to build a team, when Joe Biden looks to build a coalition, he doesn’t look away from any person. He doesn’t look away from any community. Instead, he looks to empower leaders. He looks to empower people to help make a difference. That’s why I’m voting for Joe Biden tomorrow.

You see, Joe Biden has been here earning our support before he asked for it. But tonight, he’s going to ask you for it. What are we going to say? We going to say yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I love y’all so much. When we vote? When we stand up? When we fight? When we unite? When we stand tall? God bless you Detroit. Thank you. Let’s go elect Joe Biden tomorrow.

Crowd: (27:09)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Announcer: (31:30)
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Boston native and musical genius, Michael Bivins!

Michael Bivins: (31:30)
How y’all feeling? What up baby? How y’all feeling? One two.

How y’all feeling out there?

Yes, yes. Listen. For those of you who don’t know, I’m Mike Bivins. I’m part of two singing groups, New Edition and Bell Biv DeVoe. And the reason I’m here today is because I have one of the best conversations as an adult with the Vice President, Mr. Joe Biden. And what we talked about is some of the things that he wants to do when we elect him as the President this year. Making sure that the youth understand the things that are important. But he asked us to come here today to talk to you about the importance of voting and what it means.

This election now is crucial, is critical. We see what we up against. We see what we faced with. But guess what, Detroit? This city is resilient and last week, we saw resilience in South Carolina y’all. Now they had our man counted out a little bit. But that was like a Smokin’ Joe Frazier fight. He came back. He had to come back like Joe Louis. But what I would say here in Detroit, what I love so much about this city is y’all keep it real. Y’all help people understand the fabric of your city and how much pride y’all take in this city. I know tonight when he comes out on this stage, he’s going to come with that same spirit that was just in South Carolina to make you feel calm. To make you feel good about your voice. Let’s not waver. We need each other more now than ever. And I’m not here standing up here as a celebrity. I’m standing to say I believe in Joe Biden and what he stands for, all right?

And there’s so many other eloquent people backstage that I got a chance to meet that I never met before, but I realize we’re all getting together. So as I see some of you for the first time, some of y’all some been to Charleston. Some of y’all been to the Fox. Y’all know what it is. Put a fist up in the air Detroit one time. Put a fist up in the air one time.

No keep that fist up. When I hung up that call, I say, “Yo Joe, we boys now. We friends. I’m getting on the front line. But out of respect, can I call you JB?” He said, “Yes.” Detroit if we will, JB! JB JB JB!

Crowd: (37:57)
JB JB JB JB JB JB JB JB JB!

Announcer: (37:57)
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome your governor, Governor Whitmer!

Governor Gretchen Whitmer: (37:57)
All right. Thank you. I’m going to try not to start dancing, but I’m happy! How are you feeling?

Great. Well Detroit, I am thrilled to be here with you because I got to tell you. I’ve felt better in the last 10 days than I have in 10 months. Do you feel me?

And here’s why. I decided to jump on and endorse Joe Biden. And you know why? Because Joe knows Michigan. Joe cares about Michigan. He cares about people like Michigan all across the country. We know healthcare is personal, right?

Crowd: (41:55)
Yes!

Well I got to tell you. As a 29 year old, I became a member of what’s known as the sandwich generation. That means I was sandwiched between two generations of my own family for whom I was the primary caregiver. My mom, she was dying of brain cancer, and my daughter, who was a newborn. That doesn’t make me unique because there’s a lot of people that are doing that. But I was also fighting an insurance company that was wrongfully denying my mom’s chemotherapy. I have commiserated with Joe Biden about this because the brain tumor that killed my mother is the same one that took Beau Biden’s life. I know that he and Barack Obama expanded healthcare in this country so almost 700000 Michiganders got healthcare.

And if that’s not personal enough to many of us here in Michigan, I’ll tell you what else is. When we were on the ropes, when our auto industry was struggling, who had our backs?

Crowd: (43:06)
Joe!

That’s right. Barack Obama and Joe Biden. They came to the rescue when people counted us out. When people say, “Let it fail,” they said, “No. We are in because Michigan’s important.” They had our backs and so today, I say let’s have Joe Biden’s back.

In a political discourse, where it is so nasty, where people are looking to fracture us and divide us, burn bridges, build walls, we need someone who will build bridges, and that who Joe Biden is.

That’s what this is all about. You know, I know this. We won in 2018 by big numbers because why? We showed up. We stayed focused on the dinner table issues. We showed a record of getting things done, and we build a coalition. As a Democrat, I can say this. I am proud of all the people that put their names on this ballot to run for President. There is a source of inspiration in every one of them. Whether it was Pete Buttigieg or it was Elizabeth Warren, or Amy Klobuchar. Whether it was… I don’t know, a couple other people that I’m thinking about. All right, hold on. I’m getting there.

What I love about Joe Biden though is he knows how to build a coalition. I’m riding with Biden and everyone else has a seat too. But it takes coalitions to win. And this campaign looks like this country and it looks like this state. And with that, I am happy to introduce Exhibit A. My good friend who is here to join us all and tell us why he decided to jump in, my friend, the phenomenal senator from New Jersey, Cory Booker.

Cory Booker: (45:25)
All right! Hello everybody. It is good to be back in Detroit. I think we have something in common everybody, because this morning, I made it official. I have hereby endorsed Joe Biden for President of the United States. I am so proud to be on Joe’s team because Joe is on your team.

I am so proud to be with Joe because Joe is with all of us. And when I get here to Detroit, I feel like I got some Detroit cred, because my mama was born right here in this city. My grandfather worked on the assembly lines. He was a UAW union worker and I’m proud of that.

My grandfather used to tell me a story about how he back in the days that black folks were Republicans and he went out when FDR was on the ballot and told people to turn Lincoln’s picture to the wall because we are going with the Democratic Party. Because this party is not the party of me. It’s the party of we. This is the party of civil rights. Of voting rights. Of women’s rights. Of workers’ rights and unions. It’s the party of Social Security. It’s the party of Medicare and Medicaid. It’s the party that believes in this radical concept… I don’t know if y’all ever heard of it. It’s called science.

But something happened. Something happened four years ago. We got to tell the truth now. Our nation, which every generation was trying to make a more perfect union elected a President that is trying to rip us apart. He looks at the most vulnerable and doesn’t try to lift them up. He tries to tear them down. It seems like he takes great pleasure in pitting American against American. We got knocked back. We got knocked down four years ago, but like this high school, Renaissance High School… whose very mascot is the phoenix… it is time for us as a nation to rise on up! Because America, when the going gets tough, we don’t shut up. We don’t give up. We don’t curl up. We stand up. We speak up. We rise up!

And there is one man now who’s ready to go to the center of the arena who is our best shot to beat Donald Trump. He is the best one to heal the soul of America. He is the best one to bring dignity back to that office. He is the best one to stand up for all of us in America. And that person is one person. That person’s name is Joe Biden!

Oh but you got to help me now. You got to help me now. You got to give me some help. Because he can’t do it alone. He can’t do it alone.

Oh help me now. He can’t do it alone. We can’t pray that he wins. We can’t hope that he wins. We can’t wish that he wins. We got to vote him in.

So this is on all of you. We know what our ancestors said. Without struggle, there is no progress. Know what our ancestors said. We’ve got to turn our worrying into work. We know what our ancestors have said. We’ve got to turn our anger into action. Michigan you have a chance to decide which way do we go. Do we go into the low road, into the quicksand, where we see the better days of America disappear under the sun? Or do we go the high road and get to the mountaintop and proclaim that we are a nation where liberty still reigns, where freedom is still real for everyone. Where every American has healthcare. Where we have a criminal justice system that ends the nightmare of where it is as it is today.

Bryan Stevenson says treating you better if you’re rich and guilty than if you’re poor and innocent. Where people work hard all their lives and can’t retire with security. Where people can’t afford their prescription drugs, so they put aside their insulin or their asthma inhalers. This is what we have to do right now is remember that this nation was built on patriotism and patriotism is love of country. And you cannot love your country unless you love your fellow countrymen and women.

So I want to ask you right now. Are you ready to work for Joe Biden? Are you ready to stand for Joe Biden? Are you ready to vote for Joe Biden? Well I’ll tell you what. I tell you I hear it now. I feel the energy, but tomorrow it starts. And so you got to know something. When I go to the Senate and I feel like we got some momentum, I sometimes have to call in the cleanup hitter of the Senate. Because I know Joe is about to come on this stage, but we got one more person who is… Now she is a rising star in America. She is lightning bringing the light. She is one of our power people. And I think y’all have to understand. We are sparing nothing to make sure that Joe Biden wins the state of Michigan. And so, one more voice, a voice of change, a voice of hope, a voice of tomorrow, a voice of today. I bring to the stage, the great senator from the state of California Kamala Harris!

Senator Kamala Harris: (53:00)
What’s up Detroit?

What’s up Detroit? Always good to be back. Can we hear it for Cory Booker? Gretchen Whitmer, one of the greatest [inaudible 00:53:54].

All right, all right. We got to get to work. So wait a minute, I know we’re celebrating, but we’re celebrating the work that we’re about to do for the next 24 hours, right? Because we got some work to do everybody, we got some work to do. Michigan, I do believe you are going to make the difference in terms of the outcome of selection. I do believe that. I do believe that. And when I look at this great state, it is the bell weather, it is the measure of how America is doing and what America is capable of doing. And when you put the kind of fight and work that you have always put into investing in the future of America, we will elect Joe Biden as the next President of the United States.

And you know, I believe Joe is right when he says this election is a fight for the soul of America. He’s right. You know, you all have heard me say many times, I do believe this is an inflection moment in the history of our country. This is a moment in time where we have to look in a mirror and ask ourselves, “Who are we?” And I think we all know. We are better than this. We are better than this. And what we have witnessed in these last three years, are powerful forces that have been trying to sow hate and division among us. They are voices that have been trying to divide us and have us turn against each other. Here’s my theory about it. I believe there has been a conscious attempt to try and disillusion us. Trying to have us believe that the systems cannot and will not ever work for us. Trying to have us believe that we cannot trust our democracy. Trying to have us believe that we don’t matter. Powerful forces that I believe consciously have been trying to say to you, “You don’t matter. So don’t participate because you can’t make a difference.” They’re trying to say to us, “Do not trust your government.” They’re trying to convince us that we are alone.

But see what we know is the power is with the people. The power is with the people. What we know is that we will not be overlooked and we will not be canceled. We will not be canceled. We will not be canceled. So that’s what this election is about. It’s about saying, “We know we matter. We know the power is with the people. Yes, we have not achieved the ideals of our country yet. We all know that too. But we know that if we stop fighting, we will never get there and so we fight.” That is the strength of who we are as a nation.

The strength of who are as a nation has always been about fighting for our ideals. And so let’s talk about the Joe we know. Let’s talk about the Joe we know. I’m going to tell you. I am so proud to be able to endorse Joe Biden to be the next President of the United States.

I believe in Joe. I believe in Joe. You know, one of the things that is so reflective of his personality is when he says, “There is room for everyone,” but that’s who he is. That’s really who he is. He is an individual who has lived a life of incredible service to others. He has made great personal sacrifices in his life. He has experienced in life great pain and great glory. He understands who people are. And you know, I’ve been in Washington DC for about three years now and I’m going to tell you something. Donald Trump-

He doesn’t get it. Donald Trump does not get it. He does not see people. The only people he sees are the person he looks in the mirror and sees. He does not see the people. We need a President of the United States who feels, who understands, who is thinking about that father who is at his kitchen table past midnight trying to figure out how he’s going to get through the end of the month when he’s working two jobs and knows he’s missing his son’s ball game. We need somebody that sees that mother who is sitting in the parking lot looking at the sliding glass doors of the Emergency Room and knows that even though she has insurance, if she walks through those sliding glass doors with her sick child, she might be out of pocket more than $4000 for her deductible. We need a President of the United States who has the courage and the power to see and feel and understand that is a sign of strength.

Senator Kamala Harris: (01:00:03)
See and feel and understand that is a sign of strength. And then through that strength, lift up the people. That is Joe Biden. And I’m going to tell you, on a personal level, I got to know Joe best through his son Beau. So, I was Attorney General of California. And during that time, there was a whole finding about how the big banks had been engaged in predatory lending activities. So many people here in Michigan and around the country lost their homes through that foreclosure crisis. Beau Biden stood with me, even though the state of Delaware had not been hit as hard as so many other states.

I got to know Joe through Beau, because you’ve never seen… It’s a rare thing to see such a special relationship between a father and his son. It was an extraordinary relationship they had. And Beau showed courage all the time and conviction. And he spoke with so much love about the father who raised the man that he was. I know Joe. And that’s why I’m supporting him.

And my final point, then, is this. Michigan, justice is on the ballot in 2020. Justice is on the ballot. Economic justice is on the ballot in 2020. Reproductive justice is on the ballot in 2020. Healthcare justice is on the ballot in 2020. Environmental justice is on the ballot in 2020. Racial justice is on the ballot in 2020. And Joe Biden is on the ballot in 2020. And with that, I introduce the next president of the United States, Joe Biden!

Joe Biden: (01:01:27)
Thank you.

Speaker 2: (01:01:27)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:01:27)
Hello, hello, hello!

Speaker 2: (01:01:27)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:01:27)
It’s good to see you all.

Speaker 2: (01:01:27)
Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:04:05)
Hello, Detroit! Thank you all for coming out tonight. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. [crosstalk 01:04:05] What? [crosstalk 01:04:08] Governor, thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you for your support. Your willingness not only to support me, but to serve as one of our national co-chairs, has sent a powerful message all over Michigan and beyond Michigan. So Governor, when I hear that great line you say, “Just fix the damn roads,” well, let’s just fix the country! Because we can do that.

Joe Biden: (01:04:43)
You know, just over a week ago, the press and the pundits had declared this campaign dead. Then South Carolina spoke. Then Super Tuesday spoke. And the turnout was incredible. And now tomorrow, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Idaho, Washington State, you will be heard. And Michigan, I’m counting on you in a big way. You know, Senator Sanders, as his mother would say, God bless him, likes to say we’re only going to beat Donald Trump by generating excitement and turnout. Well, guess what? On Super Tuesday, we turned out 70% more voters than ever voted there! Guess what? They voted for us. North Carolina, 19% more voters. Texas, 40% more voters. I can go on.

Joe Biden: (01:05:47)
Folks, look. He’s right. We’re going to turn out. We’re going to turn out a Democratic Party, and we’re going to turn out a party that is supported by the backbone of this country. Look, the fact is that this movement we started and all of you are part of is generating an incredible amount of motion around the country. Folks, we can’t create a movement without there being empowered by being people who have been the base of the Democratic Party.

Joe Biden: (01:06:32)
Are you a Donald Trump? [crosstalk 01:06:32]

Speaker 2: (01:06:32)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:07:25)
That’s all right. Let him go. It’s not a Trump rally. It’s not a Trump rally. Let him go. Let him go. Let him go. The Bernie bros are here. Let him go. Folks, folks, let him go. That’s okay. That’s okay. That’s okay. Let him go. Let him go. This is not a Trump rally. [crosstalk 01:07:25] See, folks. Folks. Folks.

Speaker 2: (01:07:25)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:07:25)
Folks.

Speaker 2: (01:07:25)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:07:25)
Folks.

Speaker 2: (01:07:25)
Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe! Let’s go Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:08:36)
Folks. Look, this is what’s wrong with American politics. [crosstalk 01:08:36] Let them go. Folks. Look, I’m not worried about it. It’s just a reflection of what’s wrong with American politics today. Look. Folks.

Speaker 2: (01:08:36)

Joe Biden: (01:08:36)
I’m sorry. I’m sorry.

Speaker 2: (01:08:36)

Joe Biden: (01:10:43)
Folks. This is one of the things that Donald Trump has generated. This is not who we are. This is not who we are as a party. It’s not who we are as a people. We got a lot of crazy folks around. Look, every person. I’m sorry, folks. I know. Well, look. Every person that has been knocked down, counted out, left behind, this is your campaign. We need you. We need you. We want you. We want you to be part of our campaign. So join us. Go to joebiden.com. Sign up, volunteer, contribute if you can. But we need you battling. We have to unite this country. Folks, if you want a nominee who will not only beat Donald Trump but keep the House of Representatives as… [crosstalk 01:10:43] Folks. Folks, look. If you want a nominee who’s going to beat Donald Trump, keep the House of Representatives, win back the United States Senate, join us.

Joe Biden: (01:11:28)
If you want a nominee who’s a Democrat, a lifelong Democrat, a proud Democrat, an Obama Biden Democrat, join us. If you want a nominee who will bring the party together and not tear it apart, join us. We’re building on a coalition of the most successful president of our lifetime, Barack Obama. And we’re going to do it. We’re going to do this by bringing America together, bringing together America together. Every ethnicity, every race, every gender, every economic station. Folks, look. We are going to unite Democrats, Republicans, independents of every stripe. That’s what the nation needs. We’ve got to bring the country together.

Joe Biden: (01:11:52)
Folks. And that’s going to matter here in Michigan because this is a state we have to win in November. I spent a lot of time when I was vice president here with your incredible leader in this town, Mayor Duggan. Mayor Duggan is a hell of a guy. He knows what he’s doing. And I can tell you, we worked side by side fighting to support this city. Matter of fact, the president asked me, he said, “I wanted you to help Detroit, but I didn’t expect you to go live there.” But folks, look. I’ve always believed in Detroit, just like I’ve always believed in Michigan. During the Obama Biden administration, we launched the Great Lakes restoration project. We invested $2.5 billion to help mitigate pollution, protected endangered species, habitats throughout the region. The biggest investment in the Great Lakes in decades. And it’s delivering incredible results. Revitalization of the water point, of the waterfront all across the Great Lakes. And ladies and gentlemen, we’re drawing in new businesses. Resurgences of tourism and activities, like fishing and boating on the lakes. Folks, you are the greatest source of fresh water in all the world.

Joe Biden: (01:13:17)
So look. I’ve got a long history of not just talking about what I do, but actually delivering for Michigan. And I’m so proud, so proud of the campaign of so many Michiganers who have joined us, from Lieutenant Governor Gilchrist, an incredible and dynamic young politician whose height is only exceeded by his character and his political prospects. And yes, the incredible women leaders you elected, from Brenda Lawrence to Haley Stevens to Elissa Slotkin, who used to work for us in the administration. There are some amazing women who helped win the House in 2018, and we’re going to make sure they’re going to be reelected. It’s important you reelect every one of these women.

Joe Biden: (01:13:57)
Folks, I think we’ve been delivered to a moment where we can not only defeat Donald Trump, but we also have an enormous opportunity. If we think big enough and bold enough to build a future this nation needs and deserves, making healthcare affordable, affordable and accountable, ladies and gentlemen, by making it accessible for every single American, lowering drug prices, ensuring no surprise billings, protecting rural hospitals that are closing because they can’t live on just Medicare reimbursement. We should be building on Obamacare, not scrapping it. Investing billions of dollars to find cures for cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes. Standing up and beating the NRA and the gun manufacturers. I’ve done it before, and I’ve beat them nationally, and I will do it again.

Joe Biden: (01:15:05)
Leading the world to deal with the existential threat to our time, and that is climate change. I was part of putting together the Paris Climate Accord. And I want to tell you, the first thing I will do on day one is rejoin that accord. And some of the major polluters so the United States of America can say, it’s time to up the ante. We have to up the ante. We’re 15% of the world’s problem. We will get to net zero emissions. But the rest of the world, if they don’t, it won’t matter. So, ladies and gentlemen, we have to demand the whole world come with us.

Joe Biden: (01:15:38)
Ensuring the quality of public education so it doesn’t depend on your zip code. Ladies and gentlemen, there’s no need for us to leave anybody behind. By tripling the amount of money, what they call for Title I schools, schools that are underfunded, we can pay teachers the salaries they need to stay. We’re already short 150,000 teachers today. If we don’t do something quickly to make their salaries competitive and compatible, what’s going to be happen? We’re going to be done 2.5 million… excuse me, 300,000 teachers by the time we get to 2025.

Joe Biden: (01:16:24)
Look, ladies and gentlemen, making sure if we do this, we can send every three, four, and five-year-old to school, not to daycare. And when we do that, all the studies show at the great universities in this state and around the country, that it increases exponentially their prospects of going on and going all the way through school and going beyond school. Ladies and gentlemen, reducing student debt. Reducing it because it’s an incredible burden. Paying all those who engaged in public service, including teaching, get up to a $50,000 reduction in their teaching, in their student debt. Folks, that’s who we are. That’s who we have to be.

Joe Biden: (01:17:10)
America’s leadership around the world has to change. This is a president of the United States who’s embraced every thug and dictator in the world. Poked his finger in the eyes of our allies. Not a joke, from Putin to Kim Jong Un. Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve got to repair our alliances. I met every major world leader in the last 40 years because of the nature of my job in the United States Congress and vice president. I don’t know a single solitary one who wouldn’t trade places with the United States if they could. But guess what? This president is treating NATO like it’s a protection racket. We’ll honor our commitment to NATO if you pay me more money.

Joe Biden: (01:17:49)
Look what’s happening in Asia. We’re in real trouble. Ladies and gentlemen, we have to bring the world back together as well. They need us. Folks, we have to make clear to our allies we can be trusted again, because we’ve lost the trust of so many of our allies around the world. Ladies and gentlemen, we have to also build an economy that rewards work, not just wealth, because let’s get something straight. Wall Street didn’t build America. You built America. The middle class built America. And unions built the middle class. Unions built the middle class. So folks, my dad used to have an expression. He said, ” Joe, your job’s about a lot more than a paycheck.” And I really would say this. A lot more than a paycheck. It’s about your dignity. It’s about your place in the community. About your sense of your own self-worth.

Joe Biden: (01:18:48)
It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, “Honey, it’s going to be okay.” Think of all the people you know in your old neighborhoods who don’t think they can say that to the kids today. The middle class is getting crushed. The working poor are getting poorer and poorer with little way up. Folks, we have to rebuild. We have to rebuild the middle class, the backbone of this country. Ladies and gentlemen, the fact of the matter is that we’re in a situation where it’s all about decency, and dignity, and giving people a sense of who they are. Folks, that’s why I’m a Democrat. That’s why I became a Democrat.

Joe Biden: (01:19:22)
This election isn’t a battle for the soul of the Democratic Party. It’s a battle for the soul of America.

Speaker 2: (01:19:24)
Thank you, Joe!

Joe Biden: (01:19:38)
Folks, look. I thought, when those folks came out of those fields carrying torches down in Charlottesville, close your eyes. Picture what it was like, when you saw on television, their veins bulging and screeching anger and hate, chanting the same anti-Semitic bile that was chanted on the streets of Germany in the ’30s, accompanied by the Ku Klux Klan, carrying Nazi flags. I wrote an article for the Atlantic saying that we’re in a battle for the soul of America. And we really are in a battle for the soul of America.

Joe Biden: (01:20:21)
And folks, in this most perilous moment, winning means having to unite the country. You can’t define for me who an American is based on ethnicity, based on gender, based on race, based on national origin. You can’t do it. We’re unique. We’re an idea, the most unique idea in all of history. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men and women are created equal. And we the people, in order to form a more perfect union. No other country has ever been founded on an idea, and we are. And this president, this president is trashing that idea, the way he divides us, the way he is using us to sow division and anger.

Joe Biden: (01:21:03)
And folks, a lot of my colleagues say the instinct is we just got to fight back and be as angry as they are. But presidents not only have to know how to fight. They have to know how to heal. They have to know how to heal. And folks, we not only have to beat Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans who are aiding and abetting him, but we can’t become like them. We cannot become like them. I refuse to accept the notion that we’re in a perpetual state of war with the other party. I refuse to accept the notion that in fact the only way we can get something done is by crushing the other team. Folks, we can’t get much done if we do that. We have to be ready to heal. And we can’t become like them. We have to heal our divisions, or else our democracy is going to be in real jeopardy beyond what it is now.

Joe Biden: (01:22:07)
Look, our children are listening. And our silence is complicity. Just look how Donald Trump talks, the way he treats people, the way he demeans and demonizes people, the way he ridicules people with infirmities. We haven’t ever had a president like this, really and truly. Never. He has a corrosive effect on this country and on our children. On our children. The Washington Post reported in a long article, they said that we’re already seeing the reports in schools of kids mimicking the behavior of the president. That’s the phrase. Mimicking the behavior of the president. Bullying other kids. Using the same kind of language Trump uses. Singling out immigrants for ridicule and harassment.

Joe Biden: (01:22:52)
What did we expect? Because our children are listening. What did we expect? What did we think was going to happen with this man in the White House? When teachers try to deal with this kind of behavior, is it any surprise that kids would say, this is a report of a study done by the Washington Post? Well, the president does it. Look, the words a president utters matters, no matter who the president is. They’re either good or for bad. And the words he utters have had a corrosive effect for real.

Joe Biden: (01:23:24)
And look, folks. I’ve said it many times in this campaign. We’re going to be able to overcome four years of Donald Trump with a little bit of luck. And we’re going to make sure that our kids read about it 10 years from now in this high school as an aberration in history. But if we give him eight years, he’ll fundamentally change the nature of who we are in a fundamental way. Folks, the world is watching. The world is watching. They’re looking at us and saying, what in God’s name is going on in America? As I said, he’s embraced our enemies, walked away from our closest allies, and we’ve got to change that. The whole world knows. So they know once again, the United States can be trusted. That’s a critical ingredient for our security and the economic as well as political security.

Joe Biden: (01:24:16)
Folks, future generations are watching. And in the years to come, they’re going to look back. They’re going to look back at this moment. And they’re going to say, when it mattered most, what did they do? What did they do? Did they save our democracy, or were they part of the problem? And now at this moment, when there’s so much fear in this country, when we have a circumstance where in fact, American leadership is called into question, we need honest, trusted, truthful, reassuring leadership. And look, and that’s what, if I’m given the honor of being president, I promise you I will provide to the nation.

Joe Biden: (01:25:11)
So folks, it’s time for America to get back up and once again fight for the proposition that we hold these truths self-evident, that fight for the notion that America has to lead the world and lead Americans to this new place, this new generation. Look, I view myself as a bridge, not as anything else. There’s an entire generation of leaders you saw stand behind me. They are the future of this country. They’re the people we’re going to…

Joe Biden: (01:25:33)
Look, when I announced my candidacy in Philadelphia and I said that I wanted to do it in Philadelphia, where the Declaration and where the Constitution were first unveiled and unfurled, I said I wanted to do it because, although we’ve never lived up to those aspirations, we’ve never before walked away from them. We’ve never before walked away from them. And folks, I believe with every fiber in my being that we have the capacity, every single generation, save this president, every single president has moved that arc of inclusion wider and wider and wider and wider. We can’t let it shut down.

Joe Biden: (01:26:25)
The days of Donald Trump’s divisiveness are soon going to be over. And when he’s gone, when he’s gone, we’ll come back. We’ll get back on the road of building that more perfect union. We’re only a little over a week from St. Patrick’s Day. So it’s only appropriate that I quote an Irish poet I admire, Seamus Heaney. He just passed away. He wrote a poem called “The Cure at Troy.” And there’s a stanza in that poem that goes like this. He says, “History teaches us not to hope on this side of the grave / but then, once in a lifetime, that longed-for tidal wave of justice rises up / and hope and history rhyme.” We have a chance to make hope and history rhyme!

Joe Biden: (01:27:11)
Folks, we’ve got to remember who we are. This is the United States of America! Folks, there’s nothing we’ve ever failed to do when we set our mind to it. Everybody knows who Donald Trump is. Let’s him know who we are. We choose hope over fear. We, Americans, choose unity over division! We Democrats choose science over fiction! And we choose truth over lies! So get up! Let’s take this back now! There’s nothing we can’t do! God bless you all, and may God protect our truth. We can do this. So get up! Take it back! It’s time! It’s time! It’s time! Thank you. [crosstalk 01:28:14]

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