Biden revs up economy pitch after week of silence on Trump
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[August 07, 2023]
By Jarrett Renshaw
WILMINGTON, Del. (Reuters) - President Joe Biden kicks off a visit to
three Western U.S. states on Monday as he aims to invigorate his
reelection bid by highlighting recent economic gains and his
accomplishment funding new infrastructure projects.
Biden's trip to Arizona, New Mexico and Utah represents a stark contrast
to the historic controversies swirling around his top Republican rival,
former President Donald Trump, who was indicted last week for the third
time in four months, this time for his wide-ranging attempts to overturn
the 2020 election.
Biden, who spent last week vacationing in his home state of Delaware,
has refused to comment on the trials and tribulations of his
predecessor, who will also likely be his opponent in the 2024
presidential contest. Biden's reelection strategy is focused on trying
to educate a cynical American public on the strengths of the economy and
how his legislative agenda is changing their lives.
Recent polls show a steep learning curve, even though the U.S. economy
has outrun recession warnings with record-low unemployment, strong wage
gains and better-than-expected GDP growth.
Some Americans who voted for Biden in 2020 say they believe the economy
has fared poorly under his stewardship and they might not vote for him
in the 2024 election, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released last
week.
About half the respondents who voted for Biden in 2020 said they have
heard little or nothing of his major policy initiatives to reduce
inflation or boost spending on infrastructure.
Biden and fellow Democrats pushed bills through Congress that put about
$1.5 trillion toward new bridge, road, climate and manufacturing
projects.
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U.S. President Joe Biden delivers
remarks on the economy at Auburn Manufacturing, a company that
produces heat- and fire-resistant fabrics for a range of industrial
uses in the U.S. and abroad, in Auburn, Maine, U.S. July 28, 2023.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
Democratic strategist Jennifer Holdsworth said this week's trip
would counter a message spread by the nation's right-wing media
distorting the economy and Biden's legislative agenda.
"As President Biden gets out there on the campaign trail, I think
you'll see that trend start to change," she said.
Senior White House officials and Cabinet members will fan out across
the country this week to promote the administration's
accomplishments, including at least a dozen events by department
heads, advisers and Vice President Kamala Harris. Construction sites
across the country related to the bills are being marked with signs
noting Biden's role.
Biden is expected to travel to Arizona on Monday night, ahead of an
event on Tuesday where he will tout investments in conservation and
protecting natural resources and his signature climate-change
legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA.
On Wednesday, Biden will be in New Mexico to tout the IRA's role in
a clean-energy manufacturing boom, one year after the law was
signed. On Thursday, he will be in a veteran's facility in Utah to
highlight the anniversary of the PACT Act, which provides aid to
veterans sickened by gases from military toxic burn pits.
(Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Heather Timmons and Leslie
Adler)
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