Democrat Joseph R. Biden on Monday dinged President Trump for suggesting that he might fire Dr. Anthony Fauci, the federal government’s top infectious diseases expert, and said he plans to oust Mr. Trump himself from his current job on Tuesday.
Mr. Biden spoke at a campaign event in Cleveland, Ohio to kick off his final full day of campaigning before Election Day.
“Last night, Trump said he was going to fire Dr. Fauci. Isn’t that wonderful?” Mr. Biden said. “I got a better idea: Elect me and I’m going to hire Dr. Fauci, and we’re going to fire Donald Trump.”
Chants of “fire Fauci” broke out at Mr. Trump’s overnight rally in Florida.
“Don’t tell anybody, but let me wait until after the election,” the president said.
Mr. Biden also said Mr. Trump “betrayed” Ohio workers with “weak” and “chaotic” trade policies.
He credited Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown for helping convince him to make the last-minute addition to his campaign schedule on Monday.
“When Sherrod tells me to come to Ohio the day before, I come to Ohio. That’s what I do,” Mr. Biden said.
Mr. Trump carried Ohio by about 8 points in 2016. Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden are running essentially neck and neck in the Buckeye State, according to the latest Real Clear Politics average of public polling on the race.
The president’s team does not seem outwardly concerned about the prospects that Mr. Biden could flip it.
Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, predicted over the weekend that Mr. Trump would probably carry the state by a few points.
“We’re in the midst of a pandemic, and this is a tough, tough time. And so it’s going to be closer,” Mr. DeWine said on CNN.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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