President Biden set a far better tone in Greensboro than Trump set in Selma

For the second time in just five days, North Carolina played host to a president — and the two visits couldn’t have been more different.

President Joe Biden visited North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro Thursday to discuss his plan to “build back America better.”

The president’s visit was a stark contrast to the rally held last weekend in Selma by his predecessor. Donald Trump, joined by party allies such as U.S. Reps. Ted Budd and Madison Cawthorn and Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, spent his time in the Tar Heel State serving up lies to a meager crowd of just 2,000 people.

During Saturday’s visit, Trump sang his usual song: the United States has veered from its path to greatness, and only he can right it. He reprimanded schools for trying to replace “reading and math with pronouns and gender study” and declared, hilariously, that he is the “most honest human being, perhaps, that God ever created.”

Biden, on the other hand, touted the results of his administration’s “economic vision,” including new jobs and sharp declines in unemployment.

The visit comes at a time when the president’s approval rating has fallen and economic woes abound. The economy is expected to be the biggest issue facing Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections. Inflation in the United States has surged over the past year, significantly raising the price of everyday necessities like gas and groceries. That’s a real concern for working Americans, and the Biden administration should do everything they can to get things back on track.

North Carolina Republicans — many of whom were nowhere to be found during Trump’s visit — certainly weren’t going to miss out on the chance to blast both Biden and his party. They were quick to blame Biden and congressional Democrats for the nation’s economic struggles, or, as they call it, “Bidenflation.”

House Speaker Tim Moore said in a statement Thursday that Biden is trying to sell “snake oil” to North Carolinians.

“Instead of rising debt, our state has a surplus thanks to responsible spending. Because of this, and despite the hardships caused by bad Biden policies, businesses are flocking to our state, and taxpayers have more money in their pockets,” Moore said. “Maybe the president can take a few pointers from North Carolina.”

But North Carolina isn’t necessarily the economic success story that Republicans claim it is. While several big companies have announced plans to open facilities in North Carolina, adding significant jobs, too much else in North Carolina is left wanting. Income tax cuts passed by the state legislature haven’t actually yielded that much savings, while simultaneously driving North Carolina toward the edge of a revenue cliff. “Responsible” spending has too often meant the underfunding of public education and a refusal to expand Medicaid — things that have hurt, not helped, many North Carolinians.

Sure, there are a lot of things to which Biden and Democrats will have to answer in the coming months: student loan forgiveness, the economy, the sweeping social policy agenda that doesn’t yet have enough support from Congress. But as the president spoke Thursday at the nation’s largest historically Black university, what stood out the most was how different his tone was from Trump’s.

“Let’s continue giving working families a fighting chance, let’s keep investing in the future of this country, of every community,” Biden said at the end of his speech. “... There’s not a single thing America can’t do when we do it together as the United States of America.”

This story was originally published April 14, 2022 at 6:17 PM with the headline "President Biden set a far better tone in Greensboro than Trump set in Selma."