Biden sets 20-state blitz to talk economy
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and his Cabinet will embark on a poststate of the Union “blitz” to at least 20 states next week to discuss his economic agenda after his Tuesday night address to Congress, the White House announced Friday.
Biden is expected to devote much of his second State of the Union address to highlighting his efforts over the past two years to create jobs, fight inflation and improve the nation’s infrastructure as he gears up for an expected run for reelection. After the speech, the president, vice president and members of the Cabinet will hold over 30 events in two days to drive the message home to the American people in their communities.
“During the State of the Union, President Biden will outline how the past two years has seen historic job growth, falling inflation, higher wages, and record investments coming back to America,” the White House said. “The economic travel blitz showcases how the president’s vision is creating jobs, rebuilding our infrastructure, lowering costs for families, tackling climate change, investing in our future and delivering for families too often left behind.”
On Wednesday, Biden will visit Wisconsin to discuss job creation, while Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Atlanta to promote the administration’s clean energy initiatives.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will visit a Tennessee battery manufacturing facility, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will be in North Carolina to discuss grants for climate-smart production practices, and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona will tour an Omaha, Neb., high school and discuss lowering higher education costs with students.
On Thursday, the president will travel to Tampa, Fla., to talk about his efforts to lower prescription drug costs and protect Social Security and Medicare. Harris will highlight electric vehicle investments in St. Cloud, Minn.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm will visit Carson City, Nev., to announce an investment in battery manufacturing and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will celebrate the award of a $150 million grant to replace a highway bridge in Lake Charles, La.
Other Cabinet-level visits will focus on Veterans Affairs programs in Texas, economic opportunity for Black Americans in Oklahoma, plans to plug orphan wells in Pennsylvania and efforts by farmers and ranchers in Kansas to address climate change. Officials will also visit Arizona, California, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Utah.
With Republicans now in control of the House, the Biden administration’s focus is shifting from legislating to implementing the massive infrastructure and climate bills passed in the last Congress — and to trying to make sure Americans credit the president for the improvements.
The travel follows Biden’s stops last week in Baltimore, New York and Philadelphia focused on rail and water infrastructure projects funded by the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law.