The Japan Times - 'Scranton Joe:' Biden campaign returns to blue-collar roots

The 81-year-old US president will reach out to working- and middle-class voters with an address in the former mining town, calling on the rich to pay more tax.

More pointedly, the Democrat will draw a stark contrast with his Republican election rival Donald Trump, the real estate tycoon who will be stuck in court on Tuesday as the first former president to face a criminal trial.

Biden's campaign launched a down-home social media ad ahead of his visit, in which the president's cousin says he loves Scranton because it was "the beginning" and represents a "set of values."

It also features a number of Scranton locals bashing Trump as rich and selfish.

"Growing up in Scranton, this community taught me the values of family, honesty, hard work, and fighting for the little guy. I’ve never forgotten them," Biden said on X as the ad launched.

Biden's homecoming trip also rides recent momentum in polls that show him catching up with Trump, after months of trailing the Republican.

His campaign is keen to keep pushing the advantage, backed by recent fundraising in which he far outstripped his rival.

And it's in battleground states like Pennsylvania, which Biden took from Trump in 2020, where November's election will be won and lost.

Scranton kicks off a three-day swing through the state for Biden ending in Philadelphia on Thursday, which will draw constant contrasts with Trump.

His Scranton speech "will drive home a simple question: Do you think the tax code should work for rich people or for the middle class?" Biden's campaign said in a statement.

"The president has made it clear what he thinks the answer is, and so has Donald Trump."

Biden himself released his tax returns on Monday -- dubbed "Tax Day" in the United States, the deadline for most Americans to file their tax returns -- while his campaign bashed Trump who broke presidential precedent by refusing to reveal his personal finances while in office.

- 'Just prefer Biden' -

The Democrat meanwhile refused to comment on Trump's legal woes -- shaking his head at the White House on Monday when asked if he was following the trial in New York -- but the messaging of the trip will speak for itself.

In speeches, Biden often refers to his hardscrabble Scranton roots -- stories about the father who taught him that a job is about respect, not just a paycheck, the mother who taught him about values.

His folksy stories are designed to appeal to voters struggling with the cost of living -- still a major problem for Biden in the polls.

In Scranton, news of Biden's homecoming was however only just filtering through.

One of the first sights off the interstate from New York -- along the President Joe Biden expressway named after Scranton's most famous son -- is a huge trailer truck with a sign for Trump.

"I just prefer Biden," said Debra Hodges, 66, who does volunteer work and moved to the town from New York City about 20 years ago.

"His age is not a problem for me. I mean, we're all gonna get older," she said, referring to another poll worry for Biden.

Hodges said she wasn't planning to attend Biden's rally on Tuesday but would do volunteer work getting young voters to register.

She mentioned a series of key issues, including abortion, which Democrats regard as a vote-winner as they bash Trump for bragging about his role in denying the procedure to millions of women.

But Joshua Davis, 33, who makes items like key rings and pendants using recycled plastic, and like Biden was born in Scranton, was not impressed by Trump or Biden.

"They're both puppets," he said. "So whoever we elect is just the corporate interest."

H.Nakamura--JT