Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) blasted the Bush Administration and Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, presenting a fiery speechabout the state of the economy on Monday in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, where their unemployment rateis now at 8.5%, its lowest in several years.
On the same day as Sen. McCain told reporters in Orlando "our economy is fundamentally strong,"Biden pushed the envelope, pushing that there was not an ounce of daylight between Pres. George Bush and Sen. John McCain, and summarized the state of the economy as "a record number of home foreclosures. Home values, tumbling. And the disturbing news that the crisis you've been facing on Main Street is now hitting Wall Street, taking down Lehman Brothers and threatening other financial institutions."
"I heard that a Republican County Chairman right here in Michigan saidthat they're keeping a list of foreclosed homes, suggesting that if you've lost your home, you should also lose your vote," Biden explained. "I have a different idea. I think that if you're worried about losing your home, you should vote for the guys who are going to help you keep it!"
The guilty party is Macomb County Chair James Carabelli who told reporters in a telephone interview this week the local party wanted to make sure "that proper electoral procedures were followed."
Michigan State election rules allow parties to assign "election challengers" to polls to monitor the election.These challengers can challenge the eligibility of any voter provided they "have a good reason to believe" that the person is not eligible to vote. One allowable reason is that the person is not a "true resident of the city or township." The county Republicans planned use of foreclosure lists is apparently an attempt to challenge ineligible voters as not being "true residents."
Biden added, "We've seen eight straight months of job losses. Nearly 46 million Americans without health insurance. Average incomes down, while the price of everything -- from gas to groceries -- has skyrocketed. A military stretched thin from two wars and multiple deployments."
"A nation more polarized than I've ever seen in my career," remarked Biden, "and a culture in Washington where the very few wealthy and powerful have a seat at the table, and everybody else is on the menu."
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (D-IL) revealed his economic planon Tuesday, suggesting he'd simplify the tax code so that any employed American with a bank account can do their taxes in minutes if they take the standard deduction. "There's no reason the IRS can't send Americans pre-filled tax forms to verify," he said, "with no more worry, no more wasted time, no more extra expenses for a tax preparer."
The Obama-Biden economic plan can be viewed HERE in its entirety.