Watch Joe Biden Deliver First Speech Since Being Declared President-Elect
Written by SOURCE on November 8, 2020
Joe Biden will address the nation as the 46th President of the United States in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware. The speech comes hours after he was officially named the president-elect, causing people across the country to take to the streets to celebrate his victory, as well as an outpouring of congratulatory messages from world leaders who were ready to welcome a return to normalcy.
CNN reported earlier today that his speech tonight had already been written, but he would continue to make changes as the time drew near. There have been reports that Biden will echo many of the major talking points he has made throughout his campaign run. The president-elect touched on them again in his statement following his win. “With the campaign over, it’s time to put the anger and the harsh rhetoric behind us and come together as a nation,” he said, per The Hill. “It’s time for America to unite. And to heal.”
Biden is also expected to name his 12-person coronavirus task force on Monday, according to CNN. His desire to hit the ground running with a team to combat a virus that has seen the number of new daily cases in the U.S. rise above the 100,000 mark this week shows just how important he’s taking this global health crisis, unlike his predecessor who was resigned to the idea that “we’re not going to control the pandemic.”
In late October, former President Barack Obama shared a tweet from Biden exactly one year ago where he stated Trump was “not prepared for a pandemic.”
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris spoke first, starting off her speech with a quote from the late civil rights leader John Lewis.
As the first female Vice President, Harris took a moment to praise all women, but was especially grateful for the “too often, overlooked” Black women, whom she called “the backbone of our democracy.”
The most enthusiastic moment from Biden’s impassioned speech came when he slammed his fist on the podium, saying, “Especially in those moments where this campaign was at its lowest ebb, the African American community stood up again for me. You always had my back and I’ll have yours.”
This story is being updated.
