Joe Biden said Donald Trump had “cloaked America in darkness for much too long” and blasted the president for causing “anger, fear, and division,” as he accepted the Democratic nomination on Thursday night, the Daily Mail reported.
Biden ripped into Trump from his home state of Delaware on the closing night of the Democratic National Convention (DNC). During his dramatic speech, which was themed around a battle between light and dark, he outlined his upbeat vision for the U.S. as he promised to overcome what he described as “this season of darkness in America,” the publication noted.
“Here and now, I give you my word: If you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us not the worst. I will be an ally of the light not of the darkness,” Biden told those viewing the virtual convention.
“We will choose hope over fear, facts over fiction, fairness over privilege.”
He also took aim at how Trump had handled the coronavirus crisis, according to the publication.
“Our current president has failed in his most basic duty to this nation,” Biden said. “He failed to protect us. He failed to protect America. And, my fellow Americans, that is unforgivable.”
The Democrat urged voters to judge the president on the fact that 5 million Americans had been affected by COVID-19, with more than 170,000 people dead from the virus, and claimed that the coronavirus situation in the U.S. was “by far the worst” in the world.
“And after all this time, the president still does not [have] a plan. Well I do.”
In his speech, Biden warned voters that if Trump is reelected, they could expect COVID-19 cases and deaths to remain high, the publication reported. He also focused on economic inequality, and claimed that a second term for the president would result in the closure of small businesses and more struggle for working families, while the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans would receive new tax breaks. The presidential hopeful added that he believed, granted four more years, the current administration would also destroy the Affordable Care Act.
He pointed to “four historic crises” the U.S. is facing — the pandemic, the economic crisis, the “compelling” call for racial justice, and climate change — and warned that the nation must be ready to rise to these challenges. According to the news source, Biden labeled the November contest a “life-changing” election, and said the moment called for “hope and light and love.”
Biden vowed that, should he be elected, he would be an “American president” who would work as hard for those who did not support him as those who did.
After the event, Donald Trump took to Twitter– as seen here and below — to share his thoughts on Biden’s address.
In 47 years, Joe did none of the things of which he now speaks. He will never change, just words!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 21, 2020
Biden’s attack came the night after former President Barack Obama gave a speech at the DNC in which he warned Trump would “tear our democracy down” in order to win the November election. As The Inquisitr reported, at the event, Obama alleged that the president had treated his time in office as if it were a reality show and said Trump had no interest in using his political power to help anyone other than himself and his friends.