President Joe Biden’s sudden withdrawal from the presidential race surprised no one outside a Luzerne County supermarket Sunday afternoon.
Karol Katroa, a supporter of former President Donald Trump, said he’s relieved Biden dropped out, but called current political affairs “terrifying.”
“I expected it. I mean, everybody knew that he was out of it or whatever,” Katroa said. “Whether they should’ve waited this long? People voted, so it’s kind of (like) people voted for no reason.”
WVIA News interviewed shoppers outside Wegman’s in Wilkes-Barre Township hours after Biden announced his departure from the race.
Scott Shade, who hopes Trump wins, said Biden showed signs of cognitive decline throughout his first term.
“I mean, it’s not so much [that] I have anything against either party. At this point, it gets to the point whether you’re actually fit to hold office,” said Shade. “I’m not a doctor, but I think, he’s doing the right thing.”
Catherine Forantaro, also a Trump supporter, suspects Biden planned to drop out of the race earlier.
“I think they all had this plan that he was going to drop out and slip somebody else in there, because they are for power, and they want to win. And you know Trump, he’s been through so much just for the people,” Forantaro said.
With Biden leaving the race so late, several Democratic voters said they feel less confident of beating Trump.
Ian McGraw said he plans to support Vice President Kamala Harris for president in the Nov. 5 election. Biden endorsed Harris within half an hour of dropping out.
“I’m a little bit disappointed and nervous, but not terribly surprised. I was a little unsure of his path to victory, although I was hoping for it. I’m not sure if somebody can step up and replace him at this stage and overtake Trump,” McGraw said.
Cherylann Osterowski said she isn’t worried about Harris’s fitness as a potential president.
“She deserves the spot. She deserves the chance. And whoever she picks as her [vice-president] or however they do that, fine with me. I’m a Democrat,” Osterowski said.
Standing outside Biden’s former Scranton home at 2446 N. Washington Ave. in Scranton, Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti said she’s heartbroken.
“It's been a really tough three weeks for us here in Scranton, for our family, just personally,” Cognetti said. “So, I can't imagine what the president and his family have been going through. But it's an incredible decision to have made that self-sacrifice.”
The Biden White House has regularly invited Cognetti to Washington, D.C., for issues-related events or to discuss matters affecting the city. When the president visited Ireland in April 2023, Cognetti went, too. In February, Biden appointed Cognetti to a committee of about 45 people who advise him on trade policy and negotiations. She was scheduled to join Harris later today at the White House for a ceremony honoring NCAA championship teams, but couldn’t attend.
Biden has also publicly credited Cognetti for running Scranton well. She frequently praises his performance as president and for treating Scranton well.
Cognetti said she was unsurprised by Biden’s choice of Harris to run in his place. She supports the choice, and that Biden made the decision quickly.
Waiting would have created even more of “holding pattern” than the past three weeks, she said.
“He's been serving with Vice President Harris for three-and-a-half years,” Cognetti said. “I look forward to supporting the new ticket and going to the DNC and supporting the Vice President and whatever the ticket looks like.”
A delegate to the Democratic National Convention that starts Aug. 19, Cognetti said she has no information on the potential vice presidential nominee. She made it clear she wouldn’t mind if Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is the choice.
“I will be team Josh all the way if he were to be asked and if he were to make the decision to join the ticket,” Cognetti said.
She said Democrats have an opportunity to attract and educate especially younger voters on “what it is to vote Democrat, what it is that the Democratic Party believes in.”
“We're standing right in front of Joe Biden's house, and he has been emblematic of what the Democrats stand for, for the last 50 years,” she said. “But especially as president, for these last three-and-a-half years. He grew up sitting at a kitchen table here with a family that had to leave because he lost his job.”
Biden, she said, has “put money in the hands of mayors like me” to control housing and utility costs and ensure people can find family sustaining jobs.
Cognetti said she also feels relieved because this will give Scranton a chance to “celebrate and honor Joe Biden and Scranton in a way that wasn't quite possible when he was still on a ticket.”
“I'll be looking forward to celebrating his legacy with him, I imagine he'll come to the hometown many times here,” she said. “He'll always be a kid from right here on North Washington Avenue in Scranton.”
She expects the Democratic presidential ticket will focus on everyone getting “a fair shot” and “making sure that we're bolstering the middle class and making sure people understand that there are resources out there.”
“The central stormwater projects that we have here in Scranton, none of that stuff If would be happening, if it weren't for President Biden, our parks upgrades wouldn't be happening,” she said.
“Again, I'm personally heartbroken. But I think there's a lot to be optimistic about. There's a really big fight ahead. I'm looking forward to it.”
