President Joe Biden plans to press his economic case for reelection at a campaign kickoff rally, setting up a contrast with now twice-indicted Republican rival Donald Trump.
Biden on Saturday is expected to tout his domestic achievements and argue they’ve fueled economic growth, a hot jobs market and gains for the middle class, according to a campaign official who requested anonymity to preview the message the president will deliver to union members in Philadelphia.
The economic focus aims to help Biden frame the election as a choice between himself and Republicans, while skirting the legal drama surrounding Trump. The president has been careful not to comment on the criminal charges against his predecessor, wary it could play into GOP allegations the prosecution is politically motivated.
As part of the buildup, Biden will open his campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, this summer, according to two people familiar with the plan.
“The president talking about his historic investments versus Republicans talking about historic indictments, I think, will play hugely positively for him at the beginning of his campaign and will speak volumes to the American people without him having to say a word about anything that’s going on on the other side,” said Maria Cardona, a strategist and Democratic National Committee member.
Biden faces his own federal investigation into the possession of classified documents. His earlier criticisms of Trump proved embarrassing after sensitive materials were found at the president’s Delaware home and private office in Washington.
But as he steps up his campaigning, Biden is enjoying economic tailwinds he is eager to highlight. The Federal Reserve paused interest-rate hikes amid slowing inflation, payrolls surged in May, and the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index rose.
“My philosophy about building from the middle out and the bottom up is working,” Biden told reporters Friday when asked about his rally message.
“The wealthy are doing well. We created over 13 million jobs, over 800,000 working-class folks in manufacturing,” he said. “Things are working.”
Labor support
The rally is a chance for Biden, who calls himself the most pro-union president in U.S. history, to energize working-class voters who helped him win the White House, while countering Democratic worries about flagging enthusiasm for an 80-year old president seeking a second term.
Biden started his 2020 campaign at a Pittsburgh union hall. His decision to kick off his reelection run with union members 300 miles east shows how much he’ll count on organized labor to deliver in Pennsylvania and other states — such as Wisconsin and Michigan — with large union presences.
The AFL-CIO endorsed Biden on Friday, the earliest the federation has officially backed a presidential candidate in an election cycle. It was joined by other union groups, which will allow organizers to immediately ramp up mobilizing efforts on Biden’s behalf, said Ray Zaccaro, public affairs director for the AFL-CIO.
The president’s message could also resonate with non-college educated voters who don’t belong to a union, said Seth Harris, Biden’s former top White House labor adviser.
Biden is trying to strengthen and grow his votes among union members, Harris said, adding, “But he’s also looking to the larger population of voters who are similar.”
Fundraising blitz
With the debt-ceiling crisis resolved, Biden is ramping up his political activities, which have mostly been conducted behind the scenes since announcing his reelection run in April. The president does not intend to frequently hold rallies this year, but instead he and his team will focus on fundraising and building a campaign organization, advisers said.
Biden raised campaign cash in Greenwich, Connecticut, on Friday at an event hosted by Lone Pine Capital LLC’s Stephen Mandel and his wife, Sue, where tickets ranged from $50,000 to $100,000. It’s the beginning of a stretch of fundraisers for Biden this month in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and suburban Maryland.
Biden’s efforts are bringing in big bucks, according to two people familiar with the matter.
He’s following a strategy similar to one former President Barack Obama pursued after launching his reelection bid — raising money from the most loyal Democratic contributors early, said the people, who did not want to be identified because they’re not authorized to speak for the campaign.
Traveling to major cities with deep-pocketed donors will allow Biden to report a large fundraising haul in the first quarter since launching his campaign.
Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez, her deputy Quentin Fulks and DNC Executive Director Sam Cornale plan to visit half a dozen cities this summer to meet with donors, local officials and community leaders to juice support for Biden’s campaign and get buy-in for their strategy, according to the campaign official.
Biden spent the week before the rally speaking to core constituent groups, part of an effort to remind them of his accomplishments, including the climate, health, and tax law; infrastructure and semiconductor funding packages; and bipartisan gun control law.
“Talk about it a lot more, is what I think they’ve been missing,” said Cardona.
Weak polling
Almost six in 10 Americans disapprove of Biden’s performance, and only one third say he should seek reelection, according to the latest CBS News/YouGov poll. Nearly 90% of Black voters supported Biden in 2020, but just two-thirds of Black Americans approve of his performance in the survey. Among Hispanic Americans, Biden’s disapproval rating is 59%.
Biden staged a Juneteenth concert on the White House South Lawn Tuesday, during which he and Vice President Kamala Harris touted their achievements for Black Americans and urged supporters to fight back against threats to voting and civil rights.
At a Thursday screening of the Eva Longoria-directed film, “Flamin’ Hot,” Biden lauded Latinos and immigrants’ contributions to America.
Biden received endorsements from major environmental groups on Wednesday and plugged the climate provisions of his signature Inflation Reduction Act at a time when some climate activists have been frustrated by his approval of pipeline and drilling projects.
In Connecticut — the site of the deadliest U.S. school shooting — Biden on Friday urged Congress to do more to address gun violence.
A day earlier, he held a White House event highlighting his campaign against “junk fees,” an effort designed to appeal to working- and middle-class Americans worried about rising costs.
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(With assistance from Bill Allison, Justin Sink and Jennifer Jacobs.)
