Joe Biden DNC speech shows he would have loved to run against Trump

PHILADELPHIA — It seemed like the speech Joe Biden would have given if he were the Democratic nominee for president.

And clearly, the vice president felt Wednesday night he’d have been doing awfully well against the Republican nominee, Donald Trump.

After an emotional tribute to his eldest son, Beau, who died a year ago of brain cancer at age 46, and some words of support for the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, Biden saved his most passionate oratory for a rousing takedown of Trump.

Biden used the heart of his speech to take Trump’s message of doom and gloom and use it against him, arguing that Trump is betting against Americans and doubting their strength and resolve.

He gathered steam as he began to talk about Trump.

“We should really think about this,” Biden said. “[Trump’s] cynicism is unbounded. His lack of empathy and compassion can be summed up in a phrase I think he’s really proud of: ‘You’re fired.’”

“How can there be pleasure in saying you’re fired?’” Biden said, growing outraged. Then, piercing the air with his index finger, Biden struck at Trump’s core support in the electorate, white working families.

“He’s saying he cares about the middle class. Give me a break,” Biden said. “That’s a bunch of malarkey.”

The crowd exploded with applause, and from there Biden — who made note of his “Middle-Class Joe” nickname — was off to the races, feeding off the crowd’s delight with his impassioned critique.

“This guy doesn’t have a clue about the middle class, not a clue. He has no clue about what makes America great,” Biden said. He skipped a beat, then added: “Actually, he has no clue, period.”

The crowd again rose to its feet, this time chanting, “Not a clue, not a clue.”

Biden leveled the charge that Trump is shockingly unqualified to be president.

“No major party nominee in the history of this nation has ever known less or has been less prepared to deal with our national security. We cannot elect a man who exploits our fear of ISIS and other terrorists, who has no plan … a man who embraces the tactics of our enemies: torture, religious intolerance,” Biden said.

“We cannot elect a man who belittles our closest allies while embracing dictators like Vladimir Putin, a man who confuses bluster with strength,” he said. “We simply cannot let that happen as Americans, period.”

These were strong words coming from any politician or public figure. But coming from a man one heartbeat from the presidency was remarkable. Biden, who has run for president twice, didn’t rule out another White House bid in 2016 until last October.

Biden closed his speech by taking the audience even further into rapture, leading to chants of “USA, USA,” which have been more of a fixture in recent years at Republican political events.

“It’s never, never, never been a good bet to bet against America,” Biden said. “Americans have never, ever, ever let their country down. Never. Never.”

For an administration that has been criticized for not believing in American exceptionalism, his closing sentiments were awfully full of nationalistic fervor.

“We are America, second to none, and we own the finish line,” Biden yelled. “Don’t forget it! We’re America!”

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