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‘Pennsylvania is absolutely essential’ to win Electoral College: Biden National Press Secretary

Yahoo Finance’s Alexis Christoforous and Jamal Brown, National Press Secretary for Joe Biden for President, discuss the 2020 election.

Video Transcript

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Joe Biden has spent a lot of time in Pennsylvania, so has President Trump. Are the 20 electoral college votes up for grabs there essential to getting to 270? And if not, which of the swing states are you relying on?

JAMAL BROWN: Certainly. Well, look, you know, I'll answer it this way. You know, looking back at 2016, Secretary Clinton poured her heart out into that election, and she won by nearly 3 million votes. And that means nearly 3 million people more wanted her to be president of the United States, but for the electoral college.

And so we took those lessons learned from 2016 to map out an expanded path to victory, and Pennsylvania is absolutely essential to that win. You know, as you mentioned, Vice President Biden has been barnstorming the Midwest, but also Pennsylvania. He was here earlier this morning, not just in Scranton, but in Philadelphia, again, where I'm located. And he was in Pittsburgh last night, where hundreds of thousands of people came out to hear him speak, and, of course, enjoy a socially distanced concert from John Legend and Lady Gaga.

But we are not just looking at Pennsylvania. We also are looking at key states like Florida, where we know it's going to be close, but we're also looking at Florida. We're looking at Texas, where the early vote-- the early vote total was more than the 2016 total at the end of the day. So we have Arizona. We have Texas. We have Pennsylvania. We have Wisconsin. We have Georgia. We have a number of different pathways to hit that threshold of 270.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: The vice president has-- has promised to address the nation tonight. Give us a preview of the tone he'll likely strike, even if the results are unclear.

JAMAL BROWN: Certainly. Well, I think, you know, tonight, you're going to hear Vice President Biden tell the truth. He's going to tell the American people about himself. He's going to speak about the issues that he's been speaking about since April 25, 2019 when we launched this campaign.

And that is how he's going to unite this country, bring this country together, rebuild an inclusive middle class so that everyone, no matter your race, ethnic background, no matter where you live, your zip code, your sexual orientation is brought along for the ride. And also how he's going to unite the country. You know, over the last four years, we've-- we've all lived through the damaging effects of Donald Trump through these four crises, a crises of-- a climate crises exacerbated by his policies, a crises-- economic crises, as we've seen millions of Americans out of work, looking-- wondering how they're going to pay for the next-- pay for rent, pay for their groceries.

You know, we've seen a pandemic, a health crisis, where-- you know, that, you know, killed more than 230,000 Americans, that has infected more than 9.2 million Americans. And we've also seen a crisis of racial injustice fanned by the flames of this president who has stoked racial divisions, rather than healing them, and stoked divides across the country. So you're going to hear Joe Biden speak about those-- those kind of four themes, but also how he's really going to build back better over the next four years as president.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: You know, Jamal, here at Yahoo Finance, of course, we concentrate on the economy and the stock market. And time and time again, people give President Trump credit for the good economy we had pre-pandemic. What do you say to the business community who looks at tax Biden's-- at Joe Biden's proposed tax proposal and say, you know what, this is going to hurt our profits, and it's not going to create jobs?

JAMAL BROWN: Certainly. Well, you know, I think, you know, people across the business community have come out in full support for Joe Biden. And that's because they understand and they also believe that we need to start rewarding work and not wealth. It makes no sense why the 90-- 91 of the Fortune-- Fortune 500 companies have paid zero dollars in federal income taxes. It makes no sense why Donald Trump is paying only $750 in taxes, less than he's paid to Beijing. It makes no sense, you know, while-- you know, why, you know, a firefighter, a nurse, an educator is paying more to taxes that someone on Wall Street.

And so we need to really start, again, you know, driving an economic plan and vision that rewards working families. And I think, you know-- and part of his economic plan, I'll say, is ensuring that, you know, we raise the minimum wage to $15, that we're not raising a single penny in taxes for those making under $400,000. And again, you know, this election, Joe Biden fundamentally believes, that this is an election of Scranton versus Park Avenue. And I think you're going to-- you see that with the overwhelming support that he has across the country, across economic and socioeconomic economic backgrounds as well, by leaders in the business community as well.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Look, Joe Biden has had a very long career in politics, 47 years, two previous failed attempts at the White House. Why might the third time be the charm here for Joe Biden, Jamal?

JAMAL BROWN: Joe Biden has met his moment. And I think this country is-- met this moment with Joe Biden. You know, this is the most consequential election of our lifetime. For many Americans today, the personal is political.

Their health care is on the line. Their ability to breathe clean air is on the line. You know, if-- we're seeing right now at the Supreme Court next week, there's going to be a case around health care. You know, Joe Biden believes that health care is a right, not a privilege, and that's why he fought so hard to pass the Affordable Care Act.

And so, you know, Joe Biden has dedicated his life to public service, to the advancement of Americans, and Americans are looking for an empathetic leader, someone who is experienced. And when you look at-- when you, you know, compare Joe Biden to Donald Trump, there's no comparison. And people are really looking, actually, for a president, rather than a king.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Finally, Jamal, does-- does the Biden camp expect a smooth transfer of power if this is indeed how things go down?

JAMAL BROWN: You know, we are looking to run through the tape tonight, and we expect American voters to make their voice heard. You know, we are not going to get into any hypotheticals right now. But again, we are focused on running through the tape, and we do believe that once Americans' voices are heard, Joe Biden's going to be elected the 46th president of the United States.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: All right, Jamal Brown, get ready, it could be a long night, National Press Secretary for Joe Biden. Thanks for being with us.

JAMAL BROWN: Thank you so much, Alexis.