First Lady Pool Reports of June 24, 2024

FLOTUS pool report: Philly fundraiser with Carole King

About 100 people gathered at the home of Jen and Greg Case in Chestnut Hill Monday evening for a fundraiser with Dr. Jill Biden and special guest Carole King.

Attendees included U.S. Reps. Madeleine Dean and Brendan Boyle, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker and former Gov. Ed Rendell.

Former Pennsylvania state Rep. Mike Gerber introduced Biden, saying the event raised more than $450,000.

Gerber asked Boyle to come up briefly and the Congressman called President Biden's accomplishments "the most important domestic legislation since 1965," crediting bills like the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill with helping the nation recover from the pandemic.

Dr. Biden spoke for about ten minutes standing at a podium next to a Boston grand piano. She said she'd just come from Chicago where she attended the funeral of Marian Robinson, the mother of former First Lady Michelle Obama.

"I love coming to Philadelphia for events because you're the only ones who understand my accent," Biden, who was raised in nearby Montgomery County, said.

She recalled for the crowd the fifth and final time Joe Biden proposed to her in the Spring of 1977 when she was 25.

Upon accepting his proposal, she said Joe Biden said to her: "I promise you, Jill, your life will never change."

"That of course turned out to be wildly untrue," she said to laughter. "Life is change and our lives have been filled with more joy and loss than we ever could have known that evening in my entryway."

The First Lady called her husband "the strong steady one, always unflappable, always unflinching and through highs and lows of our country and this world -- a pandemic, an assault on the Capitol, war. He is that same steady leader. The faithful warrior battling for the soul of this nation."

Biden said former President Donald Trump gets up every morning "only thinking about himself" adding past comments he made disparaging veterans "really gets my Philly up."

"Donald Trump is dangerous to our families and to our country," she said.

Toward the end of her remarks, Biden said "I know what's on your mind so let's talk about age this election. This election's not about age. Joe and the other guy are about the same age. This election is about character wisdom and ability."

She told the crowd to remember the relief Democrats felt after the election was called for Biden in 2020 and the feeling they had the morning after Trump won in 2016.

"Remember how you woke up and you said to yourself, 'Oh my God, what just happened?' We can't let that happen again," she said. "We have to start early… we have to meet this moment as if our rights are at stake because they are."

Biden then introduced Carole King whose performance your pooler did not see, though she learned that "Up on the Roof," "You've Got a Friend" and "Where You Lead," were among the songs performed.