It was a classic political stump speech at CSU Bakersfield Tuesday as Vice President Joe Biden worked to lend some White House prestige to congressional hopeful Amanda Renteria and Secretary of State candidate Alex Padilla.
Biden: "Ladies and gentleman, you're not going to get two better choices than the two people standing behind me, so don't let them down."
Speaking before a packed crowd at CSUB's Icardo Center the Vice President delivered a speech that hit on two major issues, immigration and the middle class.
Biden: "The 11 million people who have been here, not all Latino, a lot of other people as well. They're already Americans. They're already Americans because as Teddy Roosevelt said, America is not about a passport, it's an attitude, a belief."
FM89's Diana Aguilera says it's also notable what Biden didn't talk about.
Aguilera: "Vice President Joe Biden's speech lasted nearly 30 minutes. He talked about how the economy is thriving again and how America is back. But he said that the middle class is still in trouble. However he didn't talk about the drought or any water issues that I think a lot of people also expected him to talk about in this visit."
Biden's visit though highlights efforts by Democrats to take control of a seat in a district where Latinos and Democrats hold a voter registration edge. And while Republican incumbent David Valadao supports immigration reform, both Biden and Renteria sought to position him as part of the problem in getting a bill through the Republican controlled house.
Renteria: "We have a congressman who isn't quite looking at those issues, not doing something about them."
Biden's visit came at a good time for Renteria. Earlier this week Politico reported that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee pulled a reservation for TV ad time for the candidate over concerns that an upset of Valadao may be unlikely.
