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Ready to Fight: Biden Leans into Racial Debate With Democrats

Associated Press

   PHILADELPHIA - Joe Biden no longer plans to turn the other cheek.
   His front-running status fragile, the former vice president is
   embracing an aggressive plan to confront Democratic rivals who have
   tried to undermine his popularity with black voters.
   After ignoring his Democratic competition for much of the year, Biden
   and his team shrugged off the risks Thursday and leaned into a
   deliberate campaign to push back against New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker
   and California Sen. Kamala Harris, the only high-profile
   African-American candidates in the race.
   Biden's team highlighted Booker and Harris' past praise of Biden while
   raising questions about their own records related to race. And Biden's
   allies made clear that the former vice president was prepared for a
   fight in next week's debate. They also point to numerous surveys
   showing Biden with durable support among black voters that far exceeds
   that of Booker or Harris.
   "He's going to forcefully defend his record and not let it get
   distorted," declared Cedric Richmond, a Louisiana congressman and
   national co-chairman of Biden's campaign. The comments echoed Biden's
   own from the night before in Detroit when he warned his competitors
   that he was "not going to be as polite" in the upcoming prime-time
   faceoff, where Biden will share the stage with both Booker and Harris.
   Biden's shift underscores the escalating racial rift roiling the
   Democratic primary just days after President Donald Trump issued racist
   calls for four female congresswomen of color to leave the country, even
   though all of them are American citizens. For Democrats, the evolving
   fight represents an unwelcome distraction away from Trump's record.
   In some respects, however, it is only beginning.

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