Joe Biden, vice president of the United States, paid the National Association of Black Journalists a visit in New Orleans for their 2012 Annual Convention.

Amongst a myriad of issues Biden discussed, the economy was a topic he was very passionate about.

The economy, Biden said, is a defining issue of our time.

Biden, 69, said the decisions made now would have a “profound effect on the future.”

The solution, he said, is to “invest in things that are essential to growing the economy.”

The vice president cited a new infrastructure and energy policy as potential economy boosters, for example.

But Biden wasn’t shy to attribute the blame of a slowly growing economy to the Republicans.

The Republicans, he said, are rejecting programs they have historically been for. Despite offering a few good words for The Republican’s presidential nominee Mitt Romney, Biden was hardly hesitant to criticize the presidential hopeful.

Romney, Biden said, is out of touch with the average American and their communities.

“He doesn’t know that workers who have lost their jobs have been stripped of their dignity,” he said.

To conclude his speech, Biden told the audience it’s more than just the economy.

“It’s about how we treat each other,” he said. “It’s our social policy.”