Joe Biden smacks down Trump in Pittsburgh

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, beginning to venture out on the campaign trail, went to Pittsburgh on Monday to deliver a searing rebuke to President Trump. “This president long ago forfeited any moral leadership in this country. He can’t stop the violence — because for years he has fomented it,” Biden declared. “You know, he may believe mouthing the words ‘law and order’ makes him strong, but his failure to call on his own supporters to stop acting as an armed militia in this country shows you how weak he is.”

The former vice president began with an explicit, extensive and emphatic condemnation of all violence, something Trump has not done. His tone was pugnacious as he ticked off the calamities — covid-19, unemployment, racial unrest — and made clear these horrors are in “Donald Trump’s America.” He asked after listing each calamity whether we would really would feel safe under Trump. He also blasted Trump for inciting violence and using “LAW & ORDER!” to distract from the pandemic disaster. “He failed to protect America so he is trying to scare America.”