“I am more honored by your support than you can imagine, having arrived so early. It will make a huge difference in this campaign, » Biden said at the rally.
The campaign event comes just one day after the AFL-CIO endorsed Biden. The president’s speech was similar in tone and content to previous economics speeches: touting his reputation as « the most pro-union president in American history, » criticizing Republicans for tax cuts, and exposing his own economic achievements over the past two years. -a year and a half.
“We have created 13 million new jobs since I became president. The unemployment rate fell to almost a 50-year low. I have seen record lows for black employment and also for Hispanic employment. We created 800,000 manufacturing jobs,” Biden said. “Inflation has been down for 11 straight months and will continue to fall. Today it is less than half what it was a year ago. ‘we made it happen.
But both the administration and campaign officials know they still have a tightrope to walk the economy, and acknowledge it’s something they’ve struggled with in the past: Touting what they’ve done without seeming out of touch or being accused of overpainting. rosy of an image.
And for Democrats, who were growing anxious that the campaign wasn’t catching on, the event couldn’t come fast enough. He also showed how the campaign plans to operate for the foreseeable future: maintaining an upside down approach with tentpole events as opposed to what is shaping up to be a chaotic and rhetorically unpalatable Republican presidential primary.
The rally is also the first in a series of new campaign activities in the coming weeks: Biden will travel to California, Maryland and Chicago for big financial events; Vice President Kamala Harris, who has been doing most of the fundraising heavy lifting, it will be in New York City, Dallas and Maryland while the first lady is headed to Tennessee and Minnesota.
Events come as the end of the fundraising quarter approaches, where campaigns will need to reveal how much money they’ve raised. Some Democrats have complained that the Biden campaign has yet to release fundraising numbers, giving the sense that the numbers aren’t impressive enough and continuing to fuel the narrative that there’s little excitement left over reelection by Biden.
But those waiting for Biden’s re-election shouldn’t hold their breath. Some familiar with the effort said big campaign rallies might not begin in earnest until later this year or early 2024. What’s more likely are events like these tied to particular issues: gun control , abortion and the economy.
“I truly believe this country is about to take off. The investments we’ve made over the past three years have the power to transform this country for the next fifty years. And guess who will be at the center of the transformation? You. Unions, workers in this country,” Biden said.
