Biden: Trump has 'no idea' about working-class struggles

Joe Biden cast President Donald Trump on Wednesday as a fraudulent populist whose tax policies, economic stewardship and erratic leadership have hurt US workers and betrayed voters in the critical battleground state of Pennsylvania.

After scrapping with fellow Democrats for weeks, Biden returned to his hometown of Scranton to focus on his ultimate foe: Trump. The former vice president sought to dent Trump's argument that regardless of what working people may think about him personally, the actions of his administration have helped them.

"This administration has no idea what hard-working, decent, ordinary Americans are going through," Biden said of middle-class struggle in a growing but uneven economy.

"Go back to your old neighbourhoods and ask them how they're doing," Biden said, lamenting that the rising cost of health care, college and housing deny the "breathing room" that should define middle-class security.

"Too many middle-class and working-class folks can't look their kids in the eye any longer and say it's going to be OK and mean it." Trump appeared later in the day in Pittsburgh, at the opposite end of the state, but made no mention of Biden.

The speech, which was billed as an economic policy address, is the type of forum where Biden often has his strongest moments in a campaign that has contended with verbal missteps and inconsistent debate performances. But it's becoming increasingly difficult for Biden or any other Democratic White House hopefuls to compete with the daily cacophony of Washington as Trump rails against the House impeachment inquiry.

Biden was reminded of that on the eve of his speech. On the same day that a top US diplomat offered damning testimony against the president , Trump scrambled the conversation by saying Democrats are effectively "lynching" him. When Biden's campaign joined the resulting chorus of critics , the president's re-election campaign revived a 1998 video of then-Sen. Biden using the same "lynching" metaphor when discussing impeachment proceedings against President Bill Clinton. Biden tweeted an apology for his choice of words Tuesday night, but made no mention of the matter Wednesday in Scranton.

Instead, he highlighted his plans on a host of issues, including repealing Republican tax cuts, taking action on climate change, strengthening gun regulations, spending more on education and expanding government health insurance.

The visit is an early effort to block a Trump victory in Pennsylvania next year and narrow his path to re-election. The president won the state by about 44,000 votes in 2016, taking a state that had sided with Democrats in presidential races since 1988.

Reclaiming Pennsylvania, along with Michigan and Wisconsin, would put the eventual Democratic nominee on track to winning the White House.