President Biden is expected to visit North Carolina on Tuesday and make the case for the South on issues such as jobs, cost savings and reproductive rights.
The president's visit comes as his campaign focuses on North Carolina, a battleground state that former President Trump won in 2020 and hopes to turn around in 2024. According to a campaign memo, Mr. Biden plans to convey how Mr. Trump failed the South during his presidency. Directed by Julie Chavez Rodriguez.
“Our campaign will engage voters across these states, from urban centers to suburban and rural areas, where there are more Democratic voters than any other region in the country,” Rodriguez said. “President Biden and Vice President Harris have achieved results for the South after four years of failure under the Trump administration. Our campaign is committed to their policies and the “We will continue to highlight the stark contrast with the MAGA extremism that has taken hold.”
He will travel to Raleigh to speak with Vice President Harris and participate in a campaign reception.
Rodriguez said North Carolina and Georgia are swing states in the South and are critical to the path to 270 in November. Tuesday's trip will be the last of Biden's visits to battleground states in March after his State of the Union address. The tour began with a visit to Georgia.
“In 2020, Georgia was the closest state in the country won by President Biden, and North Carolina was the closest state in the country won by President Donald Trump, both very competitive states and early investment makes a difference,” she said.
Trump narrowly defeated Biden in North Carolina by less than 1 percentage point. Trump has a 6.2 percentage point lead over Biden in the state, according to polls. North Carolina hasn't gone Democratic since 2008 and went to Trump in his last two White House bids.
In his memo, Rodriguez also argued that Republicans in states like North Carolina and Georgia are too extreme. He said “MAGA Republicans” want to restrict voting rights in both North Carolina and Georgia, but Democrats are fighting back.
The Biden campaign said it is investing in Black and Spanish media and working with agents on the ground, including Gov. Roy Cooper, D.N.C. Meanwhile, Rodriguez noted that Trump's allies on the ground include North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson (R) and Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R).
North Carolina was targeted by the Biden campaign in a six-week, $30 million spring ad buy that began in March. One of the ads in the deal featured a local voice, North Carolina farmer Patrick Brown, touting Biden's support for the rural South.
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