Biden in Philadelphia to gut Trump supporters

The White House has not skimped on the symbol: it is in Philadelphia, cradle of the United States, and in “primetime”, that Joe Biden wants to savage on Thursday the supporters of Donald Trump who, according to him, dirty the ” soul” of America.

The US president is due to deliver a rare speech at prime time – 8 p.m. local (2 a.m. in Switzerland) – on “the continuing battle for the soul of the nation”, near the building where the Declaration of ‘Independence and the American Constitution.

On a more tactical level, Pennsylvania, this eastern state where Philadelphia is located, may hold the key to the legislative elections in November.

White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre promised offensive statements on Wednesday: the 79-year-old Democrat “believes that an extremist threat hangs over our democracy”.

“MAGA”

And this “threat” has a name: “MAGA” or “ultra-MAGA” Republicans, who subscribe to former President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” ideology.

In August 2017, in The Atlantic magazine, Joe Biden already wrote: “We are living a battle for the soul of the nation”, after seeing white supremacists parading in Charlottesville (Virginia, south).

Once in the White House, this veteran politician had first bet that the “battle” would be fought through dialogue with elected Conservatives of good will, and by dint of reforms in favor of the middle class. But the great air of reconciliation has been muted.

On the contrary, each favorable poll, each local election won encourages Joe Biden to let go of his blows, he who recently accused supporters of Donald Trump of adhering to an ideology of “semi-fascism”.

As of Wednesday evening, he hastened to congratulate Mary Peltola, just elected to the House of Representatives in Alaska against Sarah Palin, a historic figure on the radical right, considered by many to be a Trumpist before Trump.

Surveys

According to a poll published Thursday by the Wall Street Journal, if the midterm legislative elections were held today, 47% of voters would vote Democrat, and 44% Republican. While the right still had a 5-point lead in March.

The Democrats begin to dream of a feat during this election which renews the entire House of Representatives and a third of the Senate, and which is traditionally unfavorable to the party represented in the White House.

Opinion polls are not infallible and, in American political life, two months is an eternity. But the political debate has undeniably shifted since the beginning of the summer.

Inflation subsided, while Joe Biden pushed through a series of reforms, and announced the death of the leader of Al-Qaeda in an American strike. Enough to blunt two main campaign axes of the Republicans: the defense of purchasing power, and the skills of the oldest president ever elected in the United States.

Defense of abortion

Several polls show a rise in power of subjects that favor the Democrats. This is particularly the case for the defense of the right to abortion and the achievements of society, in the face of Republicans now perceived as reactionary by part of the electorate.

There is also the concern for democracy and the rejection of political violence, concerns that always end up revolving around Donald Trump.

While the affair of the confidential documents found in the residence of the former president in Florida is experiencing new twists every day, the Axios site noted Thursday morning that the November ballot could well take on the appearance of a “referendum on Trump”.

The Democratic Party, to which it will be difficult to keep the House of Representatives, hopes to keep its majority in the Senate.

It goes through Pennsylvania. Joe Biden has already been there on Tuesday and will return there on Monday to the Democratic contender for the Senate, John Fetterman. Donald Trump will go to this courted state on Saturday to support his candidate, Mehmet Oz.

This article has been published automatically. Sources: ats / afp