Joe Biden: We can restore the soul of our nation

Editor’s note: The Editorial Board invited both presidential candidates to make their case to our readers. The Biden campaign has responded with this op-ed from the former vice president:

America is hurting — and I know North Carolina is hurting, too.

More than 250,000 North Carolinians have been infected with COVID-19. More than 4,000 have died. Unemployment is way up. Business owners like Greg and Subrina Collier, who I met in Charlotte, are struggling to care for their employees. And right now, President Trump is in court trying to kick tens of millions of Americans off of their health care — in the middle of a pandemic.

Meanwhile, since the start of this year, the hundred richest people in America have made more than $400 billion.

Even worse, it didn’t have to be this way.

Back in February, President Trump knew this disease was deadly. His administration warned investors on Wall Street, but he hid the truth from the American people. And when asked about the 1,000 Americans who are dying from COVID-19 every day, he simply said, “it is what it is.”

It is what it is because he is who he is.

Here’s the sad truth: President Trump only sees the world from Park Avenue. He looks down on guys like me, who grew up in places where people make a living with their hands. And he looks down on service members like my late son Beau, who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. He calls them “suckers” and “losers.”

I see the world differently. I know that working people built this country — not Wall Street CEOs.

That’s why Sen. Kamala Harris and I will make sure that as we recover from this pandemic, we will build our economy back better than ever before.

That starts with getting the virus under control — by making testing free, quick, and available, and by making treatment free, too. And as soon as we have a safe and effective vaccine, we’ll ensure every American can get it without paying a dime.

Your governor has been trying to expand Medicaid — but Republicans are blocking it. My plan will automatically enroll 357,000 uninsured North Carolinians in the public option — for free. That will make a life-changing difference.

To rebuild our economy, I’ll make big corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share. With the help of that revenue, we’ll not only protect Social Security and Medicare, we’ll create millions of good-paying jobs in manufacturing, technology, and clean energy — because the future must be Made in America. And I will not raise taxes on anyone who makes less than $400,000 a year. Period.

We’ll give folks a hard-earned raise by passing a $15 federal minimum wage. We’ll lower the cost of health care. We’ll make education beyond high school, child care, and elder care more affordable. And as we rebuild, we’ll make sure everyone’s in on the deal this time—including the Black- and brown-owned small businesses that help power North Carolina.

All told, an independent analysis projects that my economic plan will create 7 million more jobs and lead to $1 trillion more in economic growth than what the President has proposed.

But this election is about so much more than policy. The character of this country is on the ballot. And Kamala and I will work every day to bring this country back together — fighting as hard for those who don’t support us as those who do.

And I’m counting on you to join us. Whenever our country has needed its conscience awakened, people in North Carolina have called us to our better angels — whether you were sitting in at Woolworth’s or Royal Ice Cream Parlor or marching down the streets of Durham.

So I am asking you to go to IWillVote.com/NC and make a plan. You can cast your ballot early in-person until Oct. 31.

Together, we can restore the soul of this nation we love.

This story was originally published October 29, 2020 at 5:00 AM.