Democratic vice-presidential nominee woos blue-collar voters in Jeffersonville during campaign stop

JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. – Democratic vice-presidential candidate Joe Biden asked voters to imagine a different kind of country Wednesday night.

A country where everyone can afford college.

One that only goes to war when necessary.

An America that demands the world’s respect again.

“I have no doubt in my mind that Barack Obama will be that bridge between what we can imagine and what we can achieve,” Biden said in his second address to Hoosiers since his selection as Obama’s running mate.

Biden spoke for about 30 minutes in Warder Park to a crowd of about 1,000 people.
Biden balanced his message of hope and belief in change with populist policies designed to improve the lives of working people.

“The middle class has been under siege, and we will end the siege,” he said.
The audience, which consisted of a broad mixture of elderly and young Obama supporters, cheered Biden’s blue-collar topics such as fixing the struggling economy.

Biden connected Republican presidential nominee John McCain to President Bush and recent crises on Wall Street.

He said an Obama-Biden White House would change how government works.
“We have a culture in Washington where the very few – the wealthy, the powerful – have a seat at the table, and the rest of us are on the menu,” Biden said. “Ladies and gentlemen, this must change.”

For many of the young people who attended, like freshman Rachel Swindle, this was their first introduction to Biden.

“Seeing him in person and being able to talk to someone who could possibly run the executive branch, that’s one heck of a thing,” she said.

Swindle drove down from Bloomington with Caitlin Corner-Dollof and junior John Miller, who are members of 1Sky, an organization dedicated to ending global warming.

Both Miller and Corner-Dollof asked Biden a question as he mingled with guests after his speech.

Miller asked about plans for an economy with 5 million green jobs. All three of the students said they identified with Biden’s plan to create jobs in alternative transportation and fuel.

Ray Mahoy drove from Lebanon, Ind., to watch Biden speak. As a 26-year veteran of the Army with two purple hearts, Mahoy said he’s glad to see young people getting involved in the election.

“I can show you places with people who would love to have the rights we do,” Mahoy said.

Biden told attendees to do everything they can to turn Indiana blue for the first time in 44 years.

Biden started his speech by saying McCain’s next term would be the same at the last two.

“Name me one single, solitary, fundamental difference that he has from President George W. Bush,” Biden said. “Tell me – how if you’re not going to change any policies – how the next four years will be any different from the last eight?”

Biden put his plea to voters in historical context as well.

“Folks, our greatest presidents – Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, John Kennedy – they’ve all called us and challenged us to embrace change,” Biden said. “Now, I view it’s our responsibility to embrace that challenge of change.”