Washington [US], September 4: US President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris appeared together at a Labor Day rally in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on September 2. This was the first time Mr. Biden campaigned with Ms. Harris after announcing he was ending his campaign.
Labor Day (the first Monday of September) in election years is also considered the start of the final sprint for candidates running for the White House. Ms. Harris has taken advantage of this event to attract votes from the working class.
Supporting Ms. Harris in Pennsylvania, Mr. Biden focused on the Vice President, mentioning her name frequently during his speech. "We have made a lot of progress. Ms. Kamala and I will continue to build on that progress. I will stay out of the way and do everything I can to help," he said, according to AFP.
President Biden asserted that voters' "only sensible choice" is his running mate. "This woman knows what she's doing. I promise you that voting for Kamala Harris will be the best decision you'll ever make," he said. In front of hundreds of American workers, Biden and Harris also criticized the plan to sell U.S. Steel to Japan's Nippon Steel in a deal worth nearly $15 billion. The deal still has to be reviewed by the Justice Department and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States for legal and national security reasons before it can be approved. The Biden administration has made clear it wants U.S. Steel to remain American-owned and has previously called for higher steel tariffs to protect domestic manufacturing.
Former President Donald Trump, who had no scheduled campaigning schedule for the holiday, instead took to the social media platform Truth Social to celebrate Labor Day and criticize the current administration. "We were an economic powerhouse, all because of the American worker! Kamala and Biden have wiped it all out," he wrote.
On the same day, September 2, Minnesota Governor and Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz held a rally with the union in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but the news that attracted attention was that Mr. Walz's motorcade was involved in an accident on the way to the campaign site. Mr. Walz's car was not affected, but the car carrying reporters was hit hard, one person suffered a broken arm and several others suffered minor injuries.
The right time
After a two-week vacation, Mr. Biden told reporters that he was ready to return to support Ms. Harris's election .
He has White House events scheduled in Wisconsin and Michigan this week, after a campaign stop in Pennsylvania. Observers say Biden's appearance could temporarily fill the void left by Harris, who will reduce her public engagement schedule and focus on preparing for the presidential debate with Trump on September 10.
Democratic allies believe President Biden still has a strong following among older and blue-collar voters. Biden's approval ratings have risen since he dropped out of the race in late July. While he lost support among key groups, he made significant gains among older voters, who typically vote Republican. Biden and Harris's teams have not yet laid out a strategy for the runoff, but they are likely to campaign solo, targeting groups where each has a distinct advantage.
CNN, citing sources familiar with the matter, said there has been coordination between Harris' campaign and the White House on how to best schedule Biden for the best results. Although Biden will speak as the incumbent president in Wisconsin and Michigan, he will also have some influence on the campaign, highlighting the achievements of the Biden-Harris administration over the past four years.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper