CNN
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President Joe Biden kicked off his re-election campaign Saturday at a union rally in his frequent home of Pennsylvania, the state that remains an intersection of his personal and political identities that he hopes can propel him to a second term.
The first official rally of his latest political campaign was a time for Biden to highlight recent economic victories that bolster his case for four more years in the White House.
“Just think back. Remember what it was like when I came into office, we came into office. Remember the mess we inherited,” Biden told the audience in Philadelphia. “Now look where we are today.”
To a roaring crowd, which repeatedly cheered “four more years,” the president touted several accomplishments, including the bipartisan infrastructure bill, a coronavirus relief package, a bipartisan semiconductor chip manufacturing bill and the newly negotiated debt ceiling deal that helped prevent a US default. .
Biden also criticized recent Republican tax proposals as he outlined what he called his middle-class vision for the American economy, referring to them several times as “bidenomics.”
Biden made only a brief mention of Donald Trump, the current front-runner for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, distancing himself from the former president’s recent federal impeachment and indictment but hitting him on infrastructure.
“Under my predecessor, infrastructure week became a spotlight,” Biden said. “By my watch, we’re turning infrastructure into a title of the decade.”
First lady Jill Biden, who spoke shortly before her husband, emphasized the president’s optimism. Wearing a corsage to mark their 46th wedding anniversary on Saturday, the first lady recalled how she met Biden after his first wife and daughter died in a tragic car crash that also injured his two sons .
“What I love about Joe is that even though he has faced unimaginable tragedies, his optimism is relentless,” said Jill Biden. “His strength is unshakeable.”
He added that the president “wasn’t done.”
“He’s ready to finish the job,” he said. “He’s ready to win, and with your help, he will.”
Although his economic victories were the centerpiece of Biden’s campaign opening, polls show that many voters give him low marks for his handling of the economy, particularly as prices have shot up after the pandemic. Recent figures have, however, shown a reduction in inflation and fears of an impending recession have faded.
Biden has said more Americans will come to reward him for his economic stewardship once they begin to reap the benefits of some of his legislative successes, including a new infrastructure law.
Labor groups that endorsed Biden ahead of his speech included the AFL-CIO, which said it was the earliest point in a presidential election cycle that it had ever endorsed a candidate.
“There is no doubt that Joe Biden is the most pro-union president of our lifetimes,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “From bringing manufacturing jobs to America to protecting our pensions and making historic investments in infrastructure, clean energy and education, we’ve never seen a president work so tirelessly to rebuild our economy from the bottom up and out.”
Biden, who made his first stop after announcing his re-election bid at a legislative conference for construction unions of North America in Washington, has long relied on union support for the their political ambitions.
“I’m more honored by your support than you can imagine — coming this early, it’s going to make a gigantic difference in this campaign,” Biden said during Saturday’s event in Philadelphia, where he called himself “the most pro-union president in American history “.
Not all unions have supported Biden’s re-election bid. According to a union memo, the powerful United Auto Workers said last month it was halting its endorsement of Biden, citing concerns about his policies that would encourage a transition to electric vehicles.
The UAW has more than 400,000 members, and Biden has touted its support in the past. Last year he called American auto workers “the most skilled auto workers in the world.” The group’s members are mostly concentrated in Michigan, a presidential battleground.
Biden also upset union members last year when he signed legislation averting a nationwide rail strike, a step he said was necessary to prevent the shutdown of a major freight movement.
Biden’s campaign has relied on his economic record, including the release of a 60-second ad titled “Backbone” last month. The spot had a populist tone, mixing audio of the president talking about “investing in places and people that have been forgotten” and a narrator reviewing the administration’s work to boost infrastructure and manufacturing in the country .
“Joe Biden is building an economy that leaves no city, no town, no American behind,” says the narrator.
This story has been updated with additional information.
