The Edgewater Hotel
Madison, Wisconsin
10:08 A.M. CDT
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Okay. Good morning, everyone. Happy Halloween.
Q Good morning.
Q Good morning.
Q Happy Halloween.
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And for those of you who are without your children today, thank you for just being on the road.
So, today, we will be leaving Wisconsin, heading west. And I'll be, obviously, in three states again today talking with the American people about the stakes of this election and the opportunity that we, the American people, have to chart a new way forward.
I will comment on the former President Donald Trump's remark about women and — and whether they "like it or not." And, listen, it's just — it actually is, I think, very offensive to women in terms of not understanding their agency, their authority, their right, and their ability to make decisions about their own lives, including their own bodies.
And this is just the latest on a series of reveals by the former president of how he thinks about women and their agency, whether he has said, as he has, that women should be punished for their choices; whether he has talked about his pride in taking away a fundamental right from women; whether it be how he has actually created a situation in America where now one in three women lives in a Trump abortion ban state and has legal restrictions on the right she rightly should have to make decisions about her own body.
The other point I will refer to about — in the last many hours is the speaker's comments about the Affordable Care Act. Look, I've been saying throughout this campaign: Be very clear that among the stakes in this election are whether we continue with the Affordable Care Act or not.
It has been a part of Donald Trump's agenda for a very long time. He has made dozens of attempts to get rid of the Affordable Care Act. And now we have further validation of that agenda from his supporter, the speaker of the House.
And what that would mean for the American people is that pharma- — that — that insurance companies could go back to a time when they would deny you coverage for health insurance based on preexisting conditions — preexisting conditions, such as you being a survivor of breast cancer, asthma, diabetes.
And what I know is that the American people, regardless of who they're voting for, know the importance of the Affordable Care Act — of, as it is also called, "Obamacare," in terms of expanding people's coverage to health care based on a fundamental principle that I hold deeply: Access to health care should be a right and not just a privilege to those who can afford it.
So, there's still a lot of work to do. But each day, I think that there are also indications that we are receiving from my opponent that verify, validate, and reinforce the fact that, one, he is not going to be fighting for women's reproductive rights. He does not prioritize the freedom of women and the intelligence of women to make decisions about their own lives and bodies. And health care for all Americans is on the line in this election as well.
I'll take your questions.
AIDE: Tam.
Q Oh, yeah. You know, since the beginning stages of your campaign, you've described yourself as an underdog. That language is gone from your speech now. Has something changed in how you're feeling?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: No, listen, I am putting it all on the field, and it's going to be a very tight race. And I — I am running like the underdog, because we are. Donald Trump has been running for the — the last decade. I've been in this race about three and a half months, and the stakes are so high.
But I've been saying for quite some time, regardless of what the polls say, we are going to win. I do believe that, because I do believe that this is a choice about two very different directions for our country.
And the choice being offered by Donald Trump is about going backward, about a constant emphasis on degrading the American people in our capacity, versus a track that is about bringing the country together, knowing we have more in common than what separates us.
And we should have a plan, which I do, to actually get things done, including bringing down the cost of living for people, investing in our small businesses, expanding access to health care, investing in American industries, including the future of American industries and American workers.
So, there you go.
AIDE: Will.
Q So, you talked about the — what the former president said being offensive to women. Wh- —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Oh, I think it's offensive to everybody, by the way.
Q Well, that — that was my question.
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Yeah.
Q The sort of hypermasculinity that he is talking about, do you — what do you think about it possibly resonating with men and male voters specifically?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: You will — you — you've been following me, and you will see that in the tens of thousands of people who attend our rallies — which is an opportunity to talk about the issues, talk about the future of our country — right? — there are men, women, young people, people of every race, every background.
One of the points, I think, that is a point of pride for everyone who attends — and including myself — is that our campaign really is about bringing people together, people of very different and diverse backgrounds, around a common theme that is about love of country, defending the Constitution of the United States, and investing in our future as — and rejecting the notion that we are divided or that that should be acceptable that we would be divided as a nation.
So, I'm very proud to have the support of — of men, women, young people, people of every background.
AIDE: Ebony.
Q So, we know we have five days until the election. How are you going to continue to draw the contest with former President Donald Trump, specifically with the undecided voters, as the pool is really shrinking now?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: I will continue — as we will do today, as we did yesterday, and so on — to talk with people where they live — so, again, here in Wisconsin, heading to Arizona, heading to Nevada — to talk with people about issues, like how we're going to deal with price gouging — corporate price gouging as a way to deal with grocery costs; how we're going to invest in small businesses and expand access to capital; how I will give first-time homeowners a $25,000 down payment assistance if they are a first-time homebuyer to help them get their foot in the door.
These are the issues that the American people want to talk about, because these are the issues that affect them. These are the issues they think about when they're sitting at their kitchen table or when they're trying to go to sleep at night.
And what I know is that they want a president of the United States who, as I say, will walk into the Oval Office with a to-do list and not an enemies list.
And so, that's what I will continue to do over the course of these next few days to let folks know that I see them, I hear them, and I'm prepared to address their challenges with a plan that is about getting things done.
AIDE: Thank you.
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Okay. Thank you.
