President Biden and Vice President Harris traveled Tuesday to North Carolina to tout the recent anniversary of the Affordable Care Act and bash Republicans’ health care agenda.
Biden delivered remarks in Raleigh, the capital of a state his campaign has cited as a potential flip opportunity in November after he lost it to former President Trump by roughly 75,000 votes in 2020.
The visit was timed around the 14th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act being signed into law, but Biden used the trip to more broadly chastise Trump and Republicans for their efforts to restrict abortion and roll back health care coverage.
“Kamala and I have come back to North Carolina to celebrate the Affordable Care Act and remind all of us that we can’t take anything for granted,” Biden said.
Biden noted Trump and the Republicans in Congress unsuccessfully tried dozens of times to repeal the law known as ObamaCare. He also seized on a budget proposal from the Republican Study Committee that called for cuts to the Affordable Care Act and entitlement programs.
“My predecessor and MAGA officials are going after seniors and people with disabilities. As you well know, they’re going after women as well,” Biden said.
The president cited Trump’s comments taking credit for the end of Roe v. Wade, as well as his remarks during the 2016 campaign in which Trump suggested women who had an abortion should face some type of punishment.
“While there are those that want to take us back in time, all of us together are determined to move us forward,” Biden said. “And here’s the future I see. I see a future where we defend democracy not diminish democracy. I see a future where health care is a right, and we restore the freedom to choose.”
North Carolina is shaping up to be a major battleground in November, with both the presidential election and a gubernatorial race atop the ticket.
A Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll published Tuesday morning found Biden had narrowed Trump’s lead in North Carolina from 9 percentage points to 6 percentage points.