Biden: If the 'march of the Tea Party' isn't stopped, there will never be compromise in Washington

While campaigning in Iowa on Monday, Vice President Joe Biden said that if Democrats can keep control of the Senate, both sides of the aisle will start compromising on issues like raising the minimum wage.

"If that happens and it will, what's going to happen is it's going to break the back of the hard right," he said. "You are going to see many reasonable people in the Republican Party start to vote reasonably again. Not exactly like we do. But they are going to be open to the kind of compromise that's always allowed this nation to move forward."

Biden was in Davenport to campaign for four-term congressman Bruce Braley, who is up against Republican Joni Ernst in a key Senate race. He said that the issues Americans care about are not being addressed due to Tea Party members in the House and Senate blocking any progress. "If we don't stop the march of the Tea Party now, those majority Republicans in the House and Senate who know better are never going to have the courage to stand up and vote the right way," he said.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

After his visit to Iowa, Biden made his way to Rockford, Illinois, to campaign for Gov. Pat Quinn (D) and U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos.