President Biden told a glitzy audience in the Bid Apple that democracy is on the ballot paper in 2024. Speaking at the “Broadway for Biden” fundraising event that followed his address to the United Nations in New York, the President said, “And let there be no question: Donald Trump and his MAGA Republicans are determined to destroy American democracy. And I will always defend, protect, and fight for our democracy.”
Addressing his age, President Biden said he is more aware of it than anyone but made a joke at his own expense when he said he is “more optimistic about the future of this country than in the 800 years I’ve served.”
The President also repeated the story he recounts about what motivated him to come out of retirement and face Donald Trump at the ballot box. He said he decided to act when he heard the former President apparently equating Ku Klux Klan members and neo-Nazis with those who protested against them. He added that he wants to send the strongest possible message that “political violence in America is never never never acceptable.”
On a lighter note, Biden told his audience, who paid up to $7,500 to attend, that he and his family were once singled out by Hollywood legend Bette Midler when they went to Broadway to see her show. He described how the show was not “family-friendly,” and having spotted him with his children, Midler prompted laughter when she asked, “Who would bring two kids to a show like this?”
The amount raised at the event is unknown, but records show that the President has amassed around $72 million in the ten weeks since announcing his candidacy. Donald Trump has raised around $35 million. Poll results between the two candidates place them neck-and-neck.
A Morning Consult survey from September 22 – 25 sees Biden at 43% and Trump at 42%. An ABC/Washington Post poll, however, placed Trump in the lead with 51% to Biden’s 42%.
