Vice President Kamala Harris will embark on a new tour to highlight the Biden administration’s efforts to expand economic opportunities for minority, low-income and rural communities.
The vice president is set to kick off the new effort on Monday in the battleground state of Georgia, where she will participate in a moderated conversation in Atlanta, according to the White House. Harris will then head to Detroit in another major swing state, Michigan, the following week.
On the multi-state swing, dubbed the “Economic Opportunity Tour,” the vice president will emphasize job creation under the administration, investments in infrastructure, capping the price of insulin and student loan forgiveness.
More 15 million jobs have been created since President Joe Biden took office with the unemployment rate staying below 4% for 26 months – figures the White House and the president’s reelection campaign often tout. Despite the Supreme Court striking down Biden’s sweeping plan to wipe out some student debt, the administration has forgiven $153 billion in student loans for 4.3 million Americans through narrower actions while still pursuing a broader relief plan, according to the White House.
The vice president will also speak to the administration’s investments in small businesses, specifically Black-owned small businesses.
“President Biden and I are committed to creating an economy in which every person has the freedom to thrive. That is why we have taken historic steps to advance economic opportunity by increasing access to capital, investing in small businesses, addressing housing costs, forgiving student loans and medical debt, investing in infrastructure, and championing additional policies that put money in people’s pockets and build wealth,” Harris said in a statement.
The focus on efforts to increase economic opportunities for minority communities comes as the Biden-Harris campaign is seeking to connect with such voters ahead of what is expected to be a grueling general election season – and amid signs some support could be waning.
A survey from the Wall Street Journal earlier this month found 30% of Black men and 11% of Black women said they will likely support Trump in 2024. That marked an increase, the Wall Street Journal noted in its poll findings, from the 12% and the 6% respectively who supported the former president in 2020, according to AP VoteCast.
A poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, found just over half of Black Americans said they approve of Biden’s handling of his job in March while 45% said they disapprove.
Recent polls and data from recent election cycles show Hispanic voters, who have historically backed Democratic candidates, may be increasingly more open to the GOP’s message.
The White House has also sought to pitch voters on its economic message amid polls showing skepticism about Biden’s handling of the issue. The administration has set off on multiple tours seeing to sell Biden’s economic agenda under the title “Bidenomics.”