Biden Takes Cue from Deep Throat

VP rails against Chamber's undisclosed campaign funds, says we should "follow the money" at Wisconsin fundraiser Friday.

Pool report:

VPOTUS headlined a Milwaukee fundraiser for two Wisconsin congressional candidates: incumbent Steve Kagen of Green Bay of the Eighth District and State Sen. Julie Lassa of Stevens Point of the Seventh District. Lassa is running to replace Dave Obey, who has held that seat since 1969. The Democratic Party is in danger of losing both seats. Both races are highly competitive.

The event was in Milwaukee at the Wisconsin Club, just west of downtown near the Marquette campus.

Program started at 5 pm. Lassa and Kagen both spoke before VPOTUS, and Milwaukee Cong. Gwen Moore joined the two candidates and the vice president in front of a group of about 80 people.

VPOTUS spoke for a little over 35 minutes, talking at length about the depth of the recession, castigating the previous Administration for the situation it left behind, and, like both Lassa and Kagen, blasting late spending by outside groups and anonymous donors. He spoke the line he has used before about reports of the death of the Democratic Party being greatly exaggerated.

VPOTUS, who was coming straight from his Delaware event with POTUS, told the story of his own father having to leave Scranton PA for Delaware to find a job. He discussed the pain of this recession, defending the record and policies of the Obama administration and repeatedly returning to what a bad situation they inherited.

“Folks, people are angry … they’re angry, I’m angry. I am truly angry as I go around the country watching what Julie has seen in her district, what all of us have seen, people absolutely fundamentally blown away by the greed and the policies of the last 8 years, of the last administration.”

VPOTUS described the Bush legacy on foreign policy in a similar vein, and summed up:

“We’re climbing out of this god awful hole, this god awful hole the Republicans have dumped us into. And it is deep.”

On the issue of undisclosed campaign money, he talked about corporate opposition to various Obama policies, saying “Why do you think the Chamber of Commerce will not tell us who is contributing to them? … Follow the money! Follow the money!”

He cited the record of GOP presidents on deficits, deriding the party’s current rhetoric on spending, saying, “These guys are not for real … They have zero, zero, zero credibility on deficits. The last guy to balance a budget was William Jefferson Clinton … These guys talking about deficits is like making an arsonist the fire marshal.”

VPOTUS also warned Democrats about the need to make the election a choice, not a referendum on people’s anger over the economy.

“People are angry with good reason. If we let this remain a referendum on their anger, we will lose … When you’re angry you don’t want to focus on the alternative. You only want to focus on your pain and your anger. And shame on us, shame on us if we let them do it and not remind them of what the alternative is and the progress we’ve made. We never said this was going to be easy, they dug us in a big hole, man, it’s going to take time to get out. But I guarantee you, I guarantee you we’re moving in the right direction.”

This was Biden’s third campaign trip to Wisconsin in four months. He was in the state for Sen. Russ Feingold in June and for candidate for governor and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett last week. Today’s event comes two days after First Lady Michelle Obama headlined a fundraiser for Feingold in Milwaukee.

In her remarks Lassa blasted the numerous outside groups running ads against her, including the US Chamber, which included her home phone number on one ad. Kagen defended the health care bill.