American politician (1942- )
Al Qaeda must be destroyed. Its ability to acquire weapons of mass destruction must be stopped. But to compare terrorism with an all encompassing ideology like Communism and Fascism is evidence of profound confusion. Terrorism is a means, not an end, and very different groups and countries are using it toward very different goals. President Bush and Senator McCain lump together, as a single threat, extremist groups and states as at odds with each other as they are with us: Sunnis and Shiites, Persian and Arabs, Iraq and Iran, Al Qaeda and Shiite militia. If they can't identify the enemy or describe the war we're fighting, it's difficult to see how we will win.
JOE BIDEN
speech, Jul. 15, 2008
The system wasn't working, and I thought it was time to err on the side of a new model. What might work, I thought, was a system that promoted personal accountability, consistency, and certainty. Congress could say people who committed the same federal crime, under the same circumstances, were going to jail for the same amount of time. We could give judges a narrower set of sentencing guidelines to work with, and felons would be required to pay the same price. We'd be judging the crime, not the person.
JOE BIDEN
Promises to Keep
It's not just the automobile industry is coming back, folks. Manufacturing is coming back. The middle class is coming back. America is coming back -- worker by worker, home by home, community by community, this country is coming back.
JOE BIDEN
speech, Mar. 15, 2012
The answer is not to turn inward, to retreat into competing factions, distrusting those who don't look like you or worship the way you do or don't get their news from the same source as you do. We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal. We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts.
JOE BIDEN
Inaugural Address, January 20, 2021
Our military might and economic resources are necessary but not sufficient to lead us into this new century. It is our ideas and ideals that will allow us to exert the kind of leadership that persuades others to follow and to deal effectively with these forces of change.
JOE BIDEN
speech, Apr. 15, 2008
Winning means uniting America not sewing more division and anger. It means not only fighting but healing the country.
JOE BIDEN
South Carolina victory speech, February 29, 2020
NATO is in fact going to crumble if we don't beat Trump. NATO is in real trouble. We need NATO for more reasons than just physical security. We need NATO to make sure that we do not allow Russia to continue to have its influence in Eastern Europe in ways that it had before. It wasn't just to stop the Soviet Union from coming into the United States, coming into Europe. It was to make sure that we did not have a kleptocracy taking over that part of the world, to unite Europe in our behalf.
JOE BIDEN
New Hampshire Democratic Debate, February 7, 2020
Some of my friends in the current administration have little interest in alliances, international organizations and treaties. There's a logic to their disengagement. They start from the premise that America's military might is the single most important determinant in the international system. Because that might is so much greater than anyone else's they see allies and agreements as more of a burden than a benefit. It's Gulliver tied down by the Lilliputians.
JOE BIDEN
speech, Apr. 12, 2005
We still have such a long way to go but today, most Americans now get the challenge we're facing. They believe in science. The issue is important to them and they want their leaders to act on climate, particularly young people, as you said, inspired by the activism of Greta and so many young Americans as well, who are leading on climate.
JOE BIDEN
virtual town hall meeting, April 22, 2020
Democratic revolutions like the ones in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya -- and the ones still unfolding in Syria and Yemen --are imbued, literally imbued with entrepreneurial spirit, a spirit that requires risk and initiative, steadfast determination, and a unifying idea.... The revolution that gave birth to my own country was inspired by the same desire for freedom and ensured that from its earliest days America has been hard-wired for innovation. Back then, it was pamphleteers like Thomas Paine. Today, it's modern new technologies that connect us in an instant.
JOE BIDEN
remarks at Entrepreneurship Summit, Dec. 3, 2011
My father had an expression he repeated a thousand times growing up: Every man and woman is entitled to be treated with dignity. Everyone. That's what your new revolution was about: dignity.
JOE BIDEN
remarks to the Ukrainian Rada, December 9, 2015
Don't tell me what you value, show me your budget, and I'll tell you what you value.
JOE BIDEN
attributed, Social Policy for Effective Practice
After 9-11, the President had a historic opportunity to unite Americans and the world in common cause. Instead, by exploiting the politics of fear, instigating an optional war in Iraq before finishing a necessary war in Afghanistan and instituting policies on torture, detainees and domestic surveillance that fly in the face of our values and interests, President Bush divided Americans from each other and from the world.
JOE BIDEN
speech, Jul. 15, 2008
You can learn an awful lot about a man campaigning with him, debating him and seeing how he reacts under pressure. You learn about the strength of his mind, but even more importantly, you learn about the quality of his heart.
JOE BIDEN
acceptance speech, Aug. 27, 2008
The idea that we can wipe out every vestige of Iran's influence in Iraq is a fantasy. Even with 160,000 American troops in Iraq, Prime Minister Maliki, our ally in Baghdad greets Iran's leader with kisses. Like it or not, Iran is a major regional power and it shares a long border – and a long history – with Iraq.
JOE BIDEN
speech, May 20, 2008
Wall Street and the CEO's didn't build this country. The middle class did. And the middle class was built by unions. Unions built the middle-class. And working families and unions will be the drivers of our success once again, when we get through this. Together, we'll make sure that everyone has a chance to build a solid middle-class life for themselves and for their families in the 21st century economy.
JOE BIDEN
speech to AFL-CIO union members, April 7, 2020
We're seeing during this crisis just why it is so important for American workers to belong to unions, so that they have someone to fight for them and with them.
JOE BIDEN
virtual town hall meeting, April 15, 2020
So now, on this hallowed ground, where just a few days ago violence sought to shake the Capitol's very foundation, we come together as one nation under God, indivisible, to carry out the peaceful transfer of power as we have for more than two centuries. As we look ahead in our uniquely American way, restless, bold, optimistic, and set our sights on the nation we know we can be and we must be.
JOE BIDEN
Inaugural Address, January 20, 2021
And by the way, this time when we rebuild the middle class, we got to bring everybody along, everybody along, black, brown, women, men, straight, across the board. The idea that somehow people are just figuring this out kind of surprises me, but everybody's just looking for a shot. No one's looking for a handout. Everybody's looking for just an even shot and they don't feel like they're getting a chance because they're not. They're being left behind. But I promise you, I give you my word as a Biden, I'm going to bring everybody along this time. Everybody along.
JOE BIDEN
Nevada Caucus speech, February 22, 2020
Ordinary people given an opportunity are capable of accomplishing extraordinary things.
JOE BIDEN
speech to AFL-CIO union members, April 7, 2020