U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo during a White House Cabinet meeting on June 6, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Kevin Dickey | Getty Images
U.S. President Joe Biden’s Cabinet will end a two-week speaking tour on Thursday, touting the administration’s economic achievements ahead of the Democratic incumbent’s first debate with former President Donald Trump.
In the 10 days leading up to Thursday’s debate, the White House organized 29 public events involving more than a dozen senior administration officials to promote Biden’s economic agenda, a White House official said in a memo announcing the blitz.
The campaigns span 15 states, including key battlegrounds such as Georgia, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Michigan.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Director of the National Economic Council Lael Brainard Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and 15 other Cabinet members and senior administration officials participated in the roadshow.
On Wednesday, domestic policy adviser Neera Tanden announced a new plan to temporarily lower out-of-pocket costs for certain prescription drugs for seniors by penalizing drug companies for rising drug prices faster than inflation.
“Older adults are solely on the receiving end of Big Pharma’s price increases. That’s no longer the case,” White House domestic policy adviser Neera Tanden said in a press release.
Earlier this week, Yellen visited Minnesota to announce a new $100 million affordable housing fund.
“Thanks to President Biden’s economic plan, the U.S. economy is strong and resilient, with strong economic growth in recent quarters,” she said in a speech on Monday.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, with the vehicle’s chief engineer Linda Chang (right), visits Ford Motor Company’s Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, where the all-electric Ford F-150 Lightning is built, before moving to Deer, Michigan Byrne delivers an economic speech.
Jeff Kowalski | AFP | Getty Images
“The labor market is very healthy, with low unemployment, real wages rising, and working-age Americans making up a larger share of the labor force than before the pandemic.”
Throughout the visit, administration officials amplified economic arguments that Biden and his campaign have hammered home in recent months and are likely to resurface at Thursday’s debate.
“The President called on big companies to pass the savings on to consumers, enacted historic cost-cutting legislation, directed the Cabinet to use every tool to reduce costs, and eliminated hidden cover in nearly every area of household budgets,” Brainard said. trash fee.
Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Lael Brainard listens to questions during an interview in Washington, DC, United States, Monday, November 14, 2022.
Andrew Haller | Bloomberg | Getty Images
White House pushes voters to increase economic pessimism and counters Republican rhetoric on inflation – an ongoing problem Biden’s weaknesses The results in the polls are consistent with the Biden campaign’s own efforts.
But they differ in one key way: While White House officials shared positive news and developments they praised Biden’s economic policies, they were careful not to mention Donald Trump or any other Republican candidate by name.
It was left to the campaign to remind voters how Biden is different from Trump, who released a statement Wednesday new ad contrasting their “competing economic visions” and accusing the Republican former president of lacking a plan to “help working families.”
White House spokesman Jeremy Edwards told CNBC the purpose of the visit was for officials to “showcase” Biden’s economic agenda “as they have done across the administration.”
Edwards likened the past two weeks to any other economic promotion blitz the administration has launched during Biden’s first term.
“Since President Biden took office, the administration has continued to meet with people to highlight the work we are doing on behalf of the American people,” Edwards said in a statement to CNBC.
In fact, members of Biden’s cabinet have begun a Very similar two week roadshow in March, after his State of the Union address.
Latest effort to hype Biden’s economic victory comes after consumers Confidence drops this month, according to the Conference Board, a nonprofit business research organization. The June index reading released on Tuesday fell slightly to 100.4 from May’s 101.3, showing households felt slightly worse about the economy this month than last month.
The Labor Department is preparing to release weekly data on initial jobless claims on Thursday, just hours before the debate. The numbers, while limited to one week, could still provide a last-minute boost to either Trump or Biden, depending on how far they fall. The latest estimate of U.S. gross domestic product will also be released on Thursday.
The two candidates’ debate over the economy will be further tested on Friday morning when the Federal Reserve releases data for May on the central bank’s favored inflation gauge, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index.
About The Author
