PITTSBURGH -- Vice President Joe Biden attended a private reception Wednesday night in downtown Pittsburgh to benefit the Democratic National Committee.
The fundraiser was closed to the public at the Rivers Club in One Oxford Centre on Grant Street, prompting some temporary traffic restrictions.
Biden began his day in Erie, Pa., where he visited Seneca High School to kick off President Barack Obama's tour focusing on rural Americans.
At the school, Biden outlined a $4.7 billion loan and grant program to develop the necessary infrastructure to deliver high-speed Internet access to areas that don't have it or are being underserved.
"The bottom line is, you can't function -- a nation can't compete in the 21st century -- without an immediate, high-quality access for everything from streaming video to information," Biden said. "Getting broadband to every American is a priority for this administration."
Money for the program is part of $7.2 billion that's included in the federal stimulus package to improve rural Internet access.
Applications will start being accepted at
www.broadbandusa.gov on July 14. The first round of funding will be awarded in September.
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