“As I’ve said from the start, I don’t claim to be a cancer expert”, Biden said in a blog post on Medium. “That’s not keeping America safe”. “We’ve got a long way to go”, he said, urging the House members to ensure that new policies help average American families “and not a bunch of special interests trying to either hang onto what they’ve already got or get more that they don’t need – that’s what the Democratic Party stands for”.
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Biden said the task force is meant to “ensure that we make the most of our federal investments, research and data, computing capabilities, targeted incentives, private-sector efforts, and patient-engagement initiatives”.
“You don’t have to make anything up”, Biden said as Democrats laughed, adding, “just say what they’ve done”. He noted that his 2012 presidential opponent, Mitt Romney, promised 6 percent unemployment but it has already dropped to 5 percent. “Do people remember that?” “But I’ve never been more optimistic that we can do big things”.
The president also called for action on several issues that have received some bipartisan support, including a debt restructuring option for the struggling island territory of Puerto Rico.
As Republicans campaigning to replace him prepared for their final debate before the Iowa caucuses, President Barack Obama painted the 2016 GOP field as divided, and confidently predicted Democrats would hold the White House in 2016. Many Republicans are anxious that Trump or Texas Sen.
The President only spoke for about 15 minutes before the friendly crowd of House Democrats, and occasionally deviated from defending his record to throwing subtle jabs at the Republican Party. Republicans now outnumber them 246-188.
On the political front, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of California announced Thursday that she raised $40 million for House Democrats previous year, including $30.4 million for the campaign committee.
House Democrats, who lost their majority in 2010 after a midterm election that was largely a referendum on Obamacare, haven’t always enjoyed a close relationship with the President. A prodigious fundraiser, Pelosi held 205 fundraisers in 35 cities.
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“We don’t have to make it up”, Biden said, referencing the successes of the Obama administration over the past seven years.
