Vice President Biden's Wife Stumps in Scranton & Hazleton
By: Eric Deabill
Updated: October 8, 2012
Scranton, Lackawanna County - With just one day to go until Pennsylvania's voter registration deadline, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden stopped in northeastern Pennsylvania Monday.
Dr. Jill Biden held events in both Scranton and Hazleton.
This will be a very important week for the Biden family. Joe Biden will face republican Paul Ryan on Thursday night in the the only Vice Presidential debate.
While at a stop at democratic campaign headquarters in Scranton, Biden's wife said Joe Biden is at home preparing for the debate.
Roughly 100 campaign supporters and volunteers turned out for the event.
"You can't be a Biden and not go back to Scranton," Dr. Jill Biden said.
Dr. Biden, the Second Lady of the United States, was in northeastern Pennsylvania to fire up the democratic base.
"Go out and talk to your friends. Go out and talk to your neighbors. Sign-up to volunteer, to canvass, to make phone calls, whatever it is," Dr. Biden said. "We have to keep moving this country forward."
As she shook hands and posed for pictures, supporters of President Barack Obama and Vice President Biden say they're ready to get to work.
"I would say on less than two hands the number of negative phone calls I've had with people in the area and we've made thousands of phone calls, thousands," volunteer Maureen Gray of Clarks Green said.
Tyler Kusma is only 14-years-old. He started volunteering in 2007 when he was just in second grade. He says the visit of Dr. Jill Biden helped to energize him again with only one month until Election Day.
"I'm definitely a lot more enthusiastic," Kusma said.
Volunteers say there is a clear choice between the two candidates.
"A lot of the people, when we're talking to them, are concerned about Medicare and Social Security, is it gonna be there for their grand kids?" volunteer Mike Petrucelli of Clarks Summit said.
Four years ago, Pennsylvania was considered a "swing state" and the candidates were stopping almost every week.
This year, things are much different.
While supporters say they would like to see the candidates more, they understand why that isn't happening.
"I would love to have more (visits) here but I know the reason why they can't be here," volunteer Charlotte Ledbetter of Scranton said.
Supporters of republican candidate say as Election Day approaches, the momentum is on their side. They say the day after last week's debate, at their 24 Pennsylvania offices, they registered 100 new volunteers. To date, Romney campaign officials say they've knocked on 37-times more doors than during the 2008 presidential campaign.
