With nearly ten days left until the presidential elections on Nov. 3, Democratic candidate Joe Biden is turning up the heat on his campaign.
The former Vice President himself made multiple stops in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Saturday, along with his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, courting swing state voters who — his campaign hopes — have become disillusioned enough with a Trump presidency to vote blue. And leaving no stone unturned, Biden sent several high-profile surrogates to stump for him around the country.
Former President Barack Obama made his second in-person campaign stop for Biden on Saturday, taking the stage at Florida International University in Miami.
The former president spent much of his speech lambasting President Trump’s presidency as a whole, saying the current president has failed the public on multiple levels.
"I did hope that, for the country's sake, he'd show at least a little bit of interest in taking the job seriously,” Obama said of Trump. “That's not how it worked out. He hasn't shown any interest in doing the work or helping anybody except himself and his friends."
“With Joe and Kamala at the helm, you won’t have to think about them every single day,” Obama later added. “It won’t be so exhausting, just having a normal president.”
Obama also mentioned President Trump’s own Saturday visit to the Sunshine State, joking that it had been a “tough week” for the incumbent. The president earlier in the day cast his ballot early and in-person in West Palm Beach.
"I understand the president's coming to Florida today,” Obama said. “You think he's hard at work coming up with a plan to get us out of this mess? Well, I don't know because I know he's had a tough week. Everybody's been very unfair to Donald Trump this week."
Before his event, Obama stopped by a Democratic volunteer location in Miami Springs, which is next to Miami International Airport. He called such volunteers the “lifeblood” of any political campaign.
“If you bring Florida home, this thing’s over,” he said, adding that it would be good to know the results early on Nov 3. “And that way I don’t have to stay up too late. I don’t have to wait for the results through the next day. I want to go to sleep knowing that we’re going to have a president fighting on our behalf.”
Later on in the day, Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, made an appearance alongside Jon Bon Jovi in Pennsylvania’s Luzerne County, an area that went easily Republican four years ago.
The band opened Biden’s event with several of Bon Jovi's hit songs including “Who Says You Can’t Go Home?” and “Livin’ On A Prayer,” wearing masks as they made their way to the stage and removing them to perform.
“I believe that Joe knows that masks are not a sign of weakness, they are a sign of strength. And respect,” Bon Jovi told the crowd. “Respect for your elders, for your neighbors, for your families, and for strangers who you might not have met yet.”
“Something as important as casting your vote next Tuesday is about the future of these United States that I so believe in,” Bon Jovi added.
In Las Vegas, another musician will hit the campaign trail for Biden: Cher is scheduled to take part in a voter mobilization event with Nevada Rep. Susie Lee.
Cher’s appearance is part of a two-state swing, as she will also join both Biden and Bon Jovi in Arizona on Sunday.
In Las Vegas, another musician will hit the campaign trail for Biden: Cher is scheduled to take part in a voter mobilization event with Nevada Rep. Susie Lee at 5 p.m.
Cher’s appearance is part of a two-state swing, as she will also join Biden in Arizona on Sunday.
The “Believe” singer is scheduled to join the Black Eyed Peas, Dave Matthews, Ben Platt, and more at Sunday night’s “I Will Vote” concert in Phoenix. Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, along with vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, will also appear at the event.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.