President Joe Biden is using one of his final public appearances before Election Day to talk up the administration’s work to help union workers, including protecting pensions, as the push for support from rank-and-file members is still underway this election cycle.
His speech at the UA Local 692 Sprinkler Fitters in Philadelphia is organized through the White House and not Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign — another sign of his diminished role as a campaigner since he dropped out of the 2024 race. While Harris-Walz signs line the grass outside the venue, signs reading “President Joe Biden Union Strong Retirement Security” are featured inside, where the Biden will deliver his remarks.
The labor community has made up a central component of the president’s past political support. Biden’s advisers and allies still believe he holds sway among White working class voters, a constituency that could be key in blue wall states like Pennsylvania. While Harris has enjoyed support from leadership of many of the nation’s largest unions, former President Donald Trump has also worked to make inroads with members.
In his most recent appearance in Pennsylvania on Saturday, Biden rallied union workers at a LiUNA union get-out-the-vote event and thanked volunteers at the Allegheny County Labor Council Headquarters in Pittsburgh. He’s set to return to his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, tomorrow.
Biden’s speech in Philadelphia will also mark the president’s first appearance on the road since his “garbage” gaffe, a moment that left some Democrats exasperated and prompted Harris to publicly distance herself from her boss.
