Vice President Kamala Harris used a joint campaign appearance with President Joe Biden within the critical swing state of Pennsylvania on Monday to say that US Steel should remain domestically owned – echoing the White House’s months-long opposition to the The planned sale of the corporate to the Japanese Nippon Steel.
Her comments got here during a Labor Day rally before cheering union members in the commercial city of Pittsburgh, where Harris said U.S. Steel is “a historic American company and it is vital for our country to maintain strong American steel companies.”
“US Steel should remain American owned and operated, and I will always stand with American steelworkers,” she said.
This reflects Biden, who on Monday repeated what he has been saying since March – that he supports the possible sale of US Steel to Japanbecause they feared it could harm the country's steelworkers. It also overlaps with Republican ex-President Donald TrumpIt's no great surprise that Harris agrees with Biden on this issue, but it surely's still a crucial policy position for the vice chairman, who has taken relatively few such positions since then. Biden gave up his re-election bid and supported his vice chairman in July.
Biden was the primary to take the stage and was greeted with chants of “Thank you, Joe” as he and Harris appeared in a hall of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
The president called Harris the one “rational” alternative for president in November. He said selecting her as vice chairman was the “best decision” of his presidency and told union members that her election was “the best decision you will ever make.”
Biden also began to say, “Kamala Harris and I will build on this,” as if he were still within the race and he or she was his running mate—but he corrected himself. It underscored how much the race has modified and the way Harris was careful to strike a balance between presenting it as “a new way forward” and showing intense loyalty to Biden and the Guidelines he pushed.
Their approach may be very different – and in some cases they’re pushing to maneuver more quickly than Biden's administration – but the general goal of expanding government programs to strengthen the center class is similar.
“We know it’s going to be a close race until the end,” Harris told the gang in Pittsburgh.
The joint rally with Biden was Harris' second of the day and followed Pittsburgh's Labor Day parade, one in all the biggest within the country. It was their first joint appearance at a campaign event for the reason that election upheaval six weeks ago.
Harris kicked off her Labor Day campaign alone with an event in Detroit where a whole bunch of spectators wore shiny yellow union shirts and held signs reading “Union Strong.” The vice chairman said “every person in our country has benefited from the work of unions.”
“Everywhere I go, I tell people, 'Look, you may not be a union member, but you better thank a union member,'” Harris said, noting that union bargaining has helped push through the five-day workweek, sick pay and other necessary advantages, and created safer working conditions.
“When unions are strong, America is strong,” she said.
Biden, 81, has spent most of his long political profession constructing close ties with unions. The White House said he asked to introduce Harris in Pittsburgh – reasonably than the standard way around – because he wanted to spotlight her record in supporting union members.
In addition to the opposition to the Nippon Steel Sale, Biden supports the expansion of tariffs on imported Chinese steel – one other area of political agreement with Trumpwhich has cheered higher foreign tariffs on many imports. Nevertheless, US Steel said in a press release Monday that it “remains committed to the transaction with Nippon Steel, which is the best deal for our employees, shareholders, communities and customers.”
“Partnering with Nippon Steel, a long-time investor in the United States from our close ally Japan, will strengthen the American steel industry, American jobs and American supply chains, and improve the competitiveness and resilience of the U.S. steel industry vis-à-vis China,” the corporate said, noting that it employs nearly 4,000 people in Pennsylvania alone.
Nippon Steel responded to Harris' comments by saying it was confident that “the acquisition of US Steel will revitalize America's steel rust belt and benefit American workers, local communities and national security in ways no other alternative can.” The Harris campaign released a rebuttal to that sentiment from David McCall, president of the United Steelworkers union. He said Harris' opposition to the sale “made it clear once again that she will always stand up for steelworkers.”
Harris, 59, is attempting to appeal to voters by positioning herself as a departure from former President Trump's harsh rhetoric while attempting to maneuver beyond the Biden era. Harris' events feel very different from Biden's, which generally drew small crowds. But the vice chairman's agenda includes the identical issues he has championed: containing prescription drug costs, defending the Affordable Care Act, economic growth, helping families pay for child care – and now her position on the sale of U.S. Steel.
The vice chairman has promised to push for lower food prices to combat inflation. In some cases, she has moved more quickly than Biden, calling for tax cuts and incentives to encourage homeownership and eliminating the federal tax on suggestions for service sector employees. But she has also been relatively quiet on major policies and continues to side with Biden on key issues.
Harris appeared onstage with Biden after the president delivered a speech on the opening night of the Democratic National Convention last month, but they’d not shared a microphone at a political event since Biden himself ran against Trump. At the time, the campaign was using Harris primarily as their lead spokesperson on abortion rights, a difficulty they imagine might help them win in November as restrictions increase and Healthcare worsens for girls after Case of Roe v. Wade.
For greater than three and a half years, Harris has been one in all Biden's most vital supporters. Now the tables have turned: Harris desires to help Biden – who hails from Scranton, Pennsylvania – win the possibly decisive state.
Although the vice chairman has spoken more forcefully in regards to the plight of civilians in Gaza as Israel's war against Hamas there continues for nearly 11 months, she has also supported Biden's efforts to arm Israel and broker a hostage deal and ceasefire. Before leaving Washington for Detroit, Biden and Harris met with the U.S. negotiating team for the hostage deal within the White House Situation Room on Monday.
“History will show what we know here: Joe Biden was one of the presidents who helped shape change,” Harris said in Pittsburgh. “And as we know, Joe still has a lot of work to do.”
When that event was over, Biden and Harris rode back to the airport together within the presidential limousine. Air Force One and Air Force Two then took off moments apart to return to the Washington suburbs – although the president and vice chairman never travel on the identical plane for presidency continuity reasons, just in case of a flight emergency.
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