SCRANTON, Pa. — President Biden has long touted his roots in this former coal mining town, where he was born and lived for the first decade of his life.
But a little more than a year before voters will decide whether the 80-year-old commander-in-chief will receive a second four-year term in office, residents of Scranton’s Biden Street aren’t feeling very proud of their most famous native. son.
The Post spoke with more than a dozen people on the road formerly known as Spruce Street, which was renamed by the Scranton City Council in 2021 to honor the 46th president.
Some Scrantonites called the change “stupid” and a “waste of money,” with others suggesting it was made too soon.
“Do you think they’ll change Biden Street back if he’s indicted?” asked an 80-year-old small business owner. “You want to name something after someone? Wait until they die.”
Many residents refuse to refer to the street as “Biden Street” and still have “Spruce Street” as their address. New York Post
Those same business owners argued Biden’s mental capacity was “lost,” echoing the 63% who told a Washington Post-ABC News poll in May that they didn’t think Biden was mentally sharp enough to effectively run the US.
Many local businesses and residents still refer to “Spruce Street” and have not changed their address or letterhead to reflect the city council’s decision. That reluctance doesn’t always pay off, given the confusion of outsiders and the existence of another nearby Spruce Street. (There’s also an honorary Joe Biden Way outside the president’s childhood home.)
“Unfortunately, I had to start changing everything, even though I didn’t want to,” said another business owner who, like most people interviewed for this story, did not want to be identified to speak freely. “To me, he’s not from Scranton. He was born here. He’s from Delaware.”
The street is lined with small businesses and stretches through downtown Scranton.New York Post
“They can make a road and name it. They don’t need to take the most prestigious street in downtown Scranton and change it,” said the same business owner, adding that he has lost business because of potential customers who refuse to shop on Biden Street.
“I don’t think he’s doing a great job,” the person added of the president. “The economy is not looking too good right now and I think his age has an impact on how he can govern the country.”
Shane Fabiani, a 33-year-old Scranton resident, also said the street was renamed “too soon” and agreed that Biden is too old to be returned to the White House.
Biden was given a street name sign for Biden Street in 2021.REUTERS
“There needs to be some kind of rule about age,” he said. “We should wait until we actually see what Joe Biden is capable of doing as president before we slap his name on a street sign.”
A “not too political” college student who works at one of the small businesses down the street offered a different perspective, saying: “I think it’s great that we can say there’s a president from Scranton.”
Any city “that has an elected official, like a president, should be proud, no matter what your beliefs are,” the student said.
In 2020, Biden won Lackawanna County, which includes Scranton, by eight percentage points over Republican Donald Trump.
However, polling data released last year showed the president’s local popularity had declined from 60% in July 2020 to 47% in June 2022.
Biden beat Trump in the Keystone State by 1.2 percentage points in 2020, and Pennsylvania may hold the key to him winning a second term next year.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
