Good evening Ron, thank you for that introduction, pal I really mean it It makes a big difference, you know, uh And, uh, my, you know, Ben, it's good to see you, pal How the hell do you keep all your hair and I've lost all mine. -- He's a longtime -- leadership in Nebraska. -- You've been a friend a long -- time Well, he's not here tonight I've been talking to him lately I couldn't come to Nebraska without -- mentioning my buddy Bob -- Carey Baba Not only won the Medal of Honor, which we all know But he's a genuine patriot and a true and loyal friend, no matter what the circumstance, folks to Mayor John Ewing of Omaha, the award winners and union leaders, including Private First Class Harry Dunn, another true patriot Not a president. -- I -- was a pretty good football player, believe it or not, I was a runt, but I was a pretty good football player I was a flanker back And if I had him running in front of me, man, I could have been all-American I couldn't be not working I couldn't have been an all-American, but look Precious, -- you're the most aptly named person I -- know And Madam Chair, thank you so much for all you've done And Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky And he may have had to leave, but you know, I spent a lot of time with Andy when I was vice president and as president, Kentucky got a living hell kicked out of them by the weather I mean, I've been to every part of that state working like hell just to keep it open, and I mean it sincerely This is a guy who knows what he's doing He does it well, and he doesn't ask whether it's a red or blue part of the state He just gets it done. -- I tried to get a hold of Andy the other day -- because when I heard that airplane crash, we spent a lot of time talking about these things, but a lot of, a lot of people really devastated and In Kentucky today as well, but uh, you know He, he's always there The Louisville airport and their families are really hurting right now And, uh, you know, we're keeping all of you All of them in our hearts and our prayers Look, so much, look, folks It's good to be back in Nebraska Now we're back in Nebraska, the Democratic Party's back The Democratic Party's back That's not hyperbole Did you see the election results Well, I want you to know, for the longest time, Delaware didn't have a national TV station They had to rely on Philadelphia And when that was happening, I liked it very much because I was voted the most popular person in New Jersey and Pennsylvania Y'all think I'm kidding I'm not. -- I keep reminding -- the -- governor -- of New Jersey, Gov, that, uh, Delaware owns the high water mark of the Delaware River on the Jersey shore Well, look, folks, uh, the fact is that we had a great night in Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California, New York City, Georgia, Mississippi, even in Mississippi Look, the American people are sending a message They're sending a message Message to Trump and to his crowd And look, folks, I, you know, -- I just want -- you to know You work for us, Mr President We don't work for you You work for us Not just billionaires and millionaires, I mean it sincerely I'm angry You work for us Look folks, -- the fact of the matter is -- that, uh You know, You better get the damn government open Because, look, folks, here's the deal You know this is democracy And the fact of the matter is that there are no kings in democracies None None But you act in a way that embarrasses us as a nation, quite frankly I spent all my most of my life and I, I got a lot, I have the dubious distinction I'm the youngest man ever elected in the history of America to the United States Senate And I'm the oldest damn president Oh Mm It's hard to say I feel like I'm 40, but I've turned it twice plus 3 Look, folks, -- I want -- to begin by saying thank you Because I'll be forever grateful that you made me the forty-sixth president of the United States of America And I'm proud Proud of the work we've gotten done over the years Together we are COVID administered to 200 vaccines, -- 200 million vaccines we put in -- people And we lost 1500 people because of the incompetence of the last administration In the 1st 100 days We did that by saving millions of lives We left no neighbor behind, no matter how poor it was We were there with docks in place Together we put America back to work We created 14 million new jobs, 600,000 of those jobs in manufacturing He made more things in America to get more jobs created in any 4 years of any president in American history Together made the largest ever investment In America's infrastructure to rebuild our roads, our bridges, our ports, our airports, our dams We connected everyone in America to the internet, everyone The internet is as important today as electricity was back in -- Roosevelt's -- time We enacted the PAC Act The business expansion of benefits, expansion of benefits and services to toxic exposed veterans like my son In all of history And America continued to lead the world. -- One of the reasons -- Barack asked me to be vice president was because of my background in foreign policy Because I've had the dubious distinction only because I've been hanging around. -- I know every major foreign leader -- since 1974 But folks, We rule We, we got the respect of the world, not just because of the example of our power, but the power of our example That's why the world follows us, not a joke When I was president Wages were up and inflation was down More people had health care healthcare than ever before in all of American history And one of the proudest things I did as president was cut child poverty in half in America But now Now we have a president deliberately making hunger worse for Americans today In the United States of America, 1 in 5 children. 1 in 5 children go to bed hungry every night No, it's more than boo It is a disgrace It's immoral It's wrong, simply wrong By the way, Did anyone see -- a Halloween party Trump -- threw for himself and his friends Oh, down at Mar a Lago I thought it was an example of who he is The theme -- of the Halloween party at Mar a Lago on -- Halloween was The Great Gatsby On Friday, Everyone dressed up like the rich folks they are from the warn twenties though On Saturday, He cut assistance to 40 million food assistance to 40 million Americans The next day, he holds his party for the world to see, make a fool of himself And he cuts, this is, -- he cuts food -- assistance You can't make this stuff up Folks, When I left the president, the president, I knew Trump was going to take a wrecking ball of the country But I had no idea. -- I have to admit I didn't -- know -- it -- was going to -- be -- an actual wrecking ball And I wanna see what he's done to the west east wing of the People's House, the White House It's a perfect symbol of his presidency Trump is taking a wrecking ball not only to the people's house But that the Constitution To the rule of law, to our very democracy And yet while doing this, at the same time can provide recently on his own account -- $40 billion line of credit to Argentina -- without even the government voting for it. -- Who -- in the hell does he think he is No, no, I'm serious I, I, I, I'm, I'm not, I'm not, I'm not kidding about you You -- may -- remember -- when I was running the first time around, I talked about I was worried about the protection of democracy I thought I was literally at risk But I cannot find I cannot find The money That he's blown away to feed all those kids The family farms in Nebraska Many of them are going bankrupt Because Donald Trump started this ridiculous trade war Which I hope the Supreme Court will finally step up and have some backbone and say he had no right to do it The Republicans Refused to say there's any problem at all There's a lot of good folks I know these folks I hate to admit it I was a United States Senator for 36 years Longer than most of you are alive But now, look, He now says we are in a golden age The only gold and stuff he's hanging on the mantle of what what I did, yeah With this, -- all kidding -- aside, does anyone feel like this is a golden age But it is a golden age for the Trump family Can any of you imagine Has anyone noticed how much the Trump family has made while he's been president and the pocket Reported $1.8 billion Can you imagine If any other president In American history did that Can you imagine what happened Because of the government shutdown Millions of families could could soon be paying double -- what they pay for the basic -- healthcare -- they received -- under my administration Here in Nebraska If Trump gets his way It's estimated that a 60-year-old couple could see their health care premium increase from $22,000 by over $22,000 a year That's not hyperbolege coming though This is real I know we say it People go, that can't be true Think about that. -- Additional -- $22,000 you get basic health insurance By the way, Do you know how many government shutdowns we had when I was president? 0 zilts, none During my term We expanded healthcare, increased Obamacare We made cancer research a priority And now Trump is cutting government funding for cancer research Folks, I, I, I, I, I know what cancer research means Cancer hits every family It hit my family hard Just as so many viewers When the love of my life, my oldest son The Attorney General of the state of Delaware, who should have been the president, not me volunteered to go to Iraq for a year He didn't have to Came back with stage 4 glioblastoma because he lived near the burn pit just like those guys did in 9/11 And he died I remember him calling me aside I shouldn't probably say this When he died, I lost part of my soul and I He asked to meet with me in his room, the hospital room And he said, Dad, look at me We have this screwy thing we Bidens We say, we wanna make sure we really mean He said, give me your word as a Biden He said, Dad, look at me Look at me I know what you're gonna do, Dad When I go, you're going to quit You're not gonna want to be engaged Look at me, dad, promise me Give me your word as a Biden stand by Give me your word I did, but guess what Through those moments like you've had, so many of you How many in here have lost anybody to cancer You know Folks But when you get that research, the research they're they're doing when they Diagnose it In my case, I just had prostate cancer And when I finish this round of treatment, you get to ring that bell At the end of a year of treatment Well, And I thank God for the doctors and nurses and the incredible breakthroughs for making the cancer research Now Trump and his Republican friends are cutting government funding for healthcare And making it more expensive, more expensive Virtually everyone And because of Republican budget cuts More than 300 rural hospitals in America, including 2 right here in Nebraska are going to shut down They're on the chopping block What alternatives do those people have Not like there's another 12 miles away Folks, I've never said this in my whole career But I think it's immoral It's un-American It's flat out wrong And you have to ask yourself, why Why in God's name are they doing this Why Well, I'll tell you why give away an additional $4 trillion in tax breaks to the benefit the wealthiest people in America That's 4 billion Over 10 years on top of The -- tax -- break -- they -- gave the first term to put us in a hole That's right Not only are kids going hungry And rural hospitals are closing The cost of healthcare skyrocketed. -- All -- because Trump wants to give people like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, which I have another way of calling him A tax cut. -- We have a word -- back in Scranton where I was born and where I spent my summers with my grandpa and grandpa Because it's a bunch of malarkey You see, Folks, here's what I understood that Donald Trump Never does understand will And I've said this before, I mean this sincerely, it's not just a slogan Wall Street, they're not bad guys, but they didn't build America The middle class built America And unions built the middle class That's a fact That's a fact -- My fat grandfather finger would roll over in his grave if I -- walked away from Let's get something clear I handed Donald Trump We handled Donald Trump Literally, not figuratively, literally the strongest economy in the world at the time, the strongest in the world. 10 days before he died, I got a call from Doctor Kissinger, who I knew well, but I didn't agree with him a lot of the time because of the Vietnam War was because I was on the Foreign Relations Committee when I was 24 years old And he called me when I was able to convince two great nations to join NATO, make it even stronger And he said, not since Napoleon Has Paris not looked over the shoulder at Moscow at Moscow with a sense of dread till you guys came along You made it stronger What's the first thing that this guy does He has to pick apart NATO He talks about what a drag they are Look We invested in America In the American people We invested in America Here in Nebraska, we supported countless projects Including the major renovation of Omaha's airport Well, it's, well, look, it's, it's actually quite a big deal It's quite a big deal And by the way, You know, the fact is that we did that It was the beginning of, I said, oh, you heard me say lots of times If we don't lead the world, who does That's not beating our chest Think about it If the United States of America Is not leading the free world Who leads the free world Who None of our NATO allies by themselves are able to do it China Russia Well folks, Look It's in the golden age The fact of the matter is that It was a very, very dark moment But you know, the fact of the matter is Uh, we're in a situation where We had something special happen just last Tuesday The Bottom line, when we were in office, we showed up for our for our neighbors Regardless of their politics Where there are red states, blue states My -- administration -- didn't reward some states and others based on how they voted My administration didn't attack red states Because I was President of the United States. -- And -- even -- the -- women -- who were most vocal -- and uh when I addressed the United States Congress and terribleness, they wanted to, they wanna keep the programs that we had To benefit them People could say, well, how could you do that to them, for them It wasn't for them For the people of their states And folks, You can't govern this nation by dividing the nation When I was president, The biggest issue facing this nation was this Is democracy Is democracy Still America's sacred cause Not a joke Is it I used to teach this in college Is it Let me tell you something The answer is yes, it has to be But democracy is not a given There's nothing guaranteed about democracy, even in America We have to put in the work We have to elect the leaders Who believe in democracy. -- Who -- stand up for it who defend it, who protect it The folks This isn't just about the people we elect Democracy is not a spectator sport It needs active participants It needs committed individuals. -- And there's people need people who love this -- country. -- It needs all -- of you badly It really does We've We've never said We have a perfect union. -- We have never -- said that -- as an -- American We've always said we're striving to create a more perfect union Alexis de Tocqueville said, quote, The greatness of America lies not in its being more enlightened than any other nation But rather in her, in her ability to repair her faults, end of quote That's the uniqueness of America That's what we have to do, repair our faults And that's what we've begun to do again on Tuesday We began to repair her faults America has a special advantage unique among nations Well, every other nation on the earth is founded On either religion or ethnicity or geography America is the only nation in the world Founded on an idea This is literal, not figurative, an idea The most powerful idea in human history Bigger than the ocean Stronger than any army More powerful than any dictator or tyrant is this We hold these truths to be self-evident That all that all men and women are created equal We've never lived up to it But we've never walked away from it And folks, Hear me say this, we're not going to walk away from it now Tuesday night was a good start Yes, this is a difficult time But we've faced difficult times before There's one thing I know about the American people, there is no quit in this country There's no quitting America, none We can't give up Now when our children need us Not when Nebraska needs us, not what America needs us Because the America of our dreams is always closer than we think, always Right here in Omaha You guys are the blue dot, right You know what it feels like to be outnumbered But every election He put up the yard signs You organize the neighbors You show up and vote And you make your voices heard In the Biden family we have an expression for that We call it keeping the faith My grandfather used to say over and over, Joey, keep the faith My grandmother would respond, no, Joey, go spread it You have to believe -- The better days ahead and make it -- happen Nebraska, you know It's more than most Every farmer Who plants a seed in Nebraska Believes every day, believes tomorrow is going to be better Every one of them Folks, I've seen a lot in my lifetime I've served this nation in elective office for 52 years I'm only 40, but I was 52 years But there's one thing I know about America, and I mean this sincerely, I've traveled over 160 nations We're the only nation on Earth Who's emerged from every single crisis we face stronger than when we entered that crisis, -- every -- single one Mark my words We emerge stronger from this crisis as well The American experiment is not going to end on our watch We'll still be that nation where honesty, decency, and integrity still matter We will still be the beacon to the world for the next century as we have for the last 250 years We just have to remember who we are, who in God's name we are We're the United States of America There's never been a country like us Scripture tells us be strong and of good courage Be not afraid Folks, I know this nation I know the American people Here's what I know no one, no one, not even a president Can destroy our democracy if we stand together and fight for it Nebraska We can't be afraid You have an election coming up soon, an open seat for Congress right here in Omaha, statewide races up and down the ballot Folks We can't be afraid to dream big, not small, big We have to get back up. -- We're getting back up in -- Nebraska and all of American in 2026, so Democrats, let's get up, get up, get up It's about to change again God bless you all Thanks for having me here And may God protect our troops Thank you.