Biden to visit Pittsburgh as president plans more travel
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 24: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with the White House Competition Council in the East Room of the White House January 24, 2022 in Washington, DC. Biden discussed efforts to lower prices for Americans laid
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - President Joe Biden will make his second visit of 2022 to Pennsylvania to visit Pittsburgh on Friday, the White House said, as the Democrat confronts a persistent COVID-19 pandemic, rising inflation and congressional gridlock stalling some of his top priorities.
The White House said Biden will discuss "strengthening the nation’s supply chains, revitalizing American manufacturing, creating good-paying, union jobs, and building a better America."
Biden is expected to tout last year’s bipartisan infrastructure law he signed, as Democrats from around the state play up its benefits, including $1.6 billion to improve bridges across Pennsylvania and $858 million to help rebuild the Montgomery Lock and Dam on the Ohio River south of Pittsburgh.
Last week, Biden and first lady Jill Biden packed food boxes at a Philadelphia food bank as part of a day of service for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
The fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus, inflation and other challenges have pummeled Biden’s approval rating and threaten a midterm rout for his party.
The presidential battleground state of Pennsylvania is of great political importance in 2022, with the governor's office and a U.S. Senate seat both on the ballot.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters last week that Biden wants to spend more time traveling the country to speak directly to Americans and less time in Washington behind closed doors negotiating legislation with Congress.
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