Las Vegas
CNN
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President Joe Biden is making his re-election bid in two Western battleground states this week, heading to Nevada and Arizona to shore up support in key states he wants to protect from former President Donald Trump in November.
Biden's pitch focuses on efforts to improve housing affordability and create jobs in clean energy and manufacturing, and to make the case that his policies are working for Americans. He also plans to use the trip to focus on early organizing efforts in those two states, which his campaign believes are “core” to winning the election.
The president is also aiming to appeal to Latinos, who make up a significant portion of the electorate in Arizona and Nevada, as his predecessor has sought to make inroads in communities that have long been key to the Democratic coalition. Biden launched his campaign's “Latinos for Biden-Harris” organizing initiative during a visit to South Phoenix, Arizona, on Tuesday night.
The president defeated former President Donald Trump in both Nevada and Arizona in 2020, but early polling suggests his path to victory in these western battleground states could be difficult this year. be. A close election is expected in Nevada, and a Fox News poll in Arizona shows a slight lead for Trump over Biden, with Biden also facing low national approval ratings. It has become.
But Biden's team is hopeful that a number of issues, including reproductive rights and democracy debates, could work in Trump's favor, especially among moderate voters.
Arizona and Nevada may have abortion rights provisions on their state ballots this November, and campaigns believe they could be key to organizing and emboldening women and moderate voters.
“Residents in Nevada and Arizona are collecting signatures for a ballot initiative to give voters the chance to protect access to abortion in their state constitutions in 2024. Nevada is the most pro-choice state in the nation. And a majority of Arizonans also support access to abortion,” said Dan Kanninen, the Biden campaign's battleground state manager.
The campaign also plans to make the fight for democracy a key pillar of its advocacy in these states, in addition to issues such as job creation and protection of trade unions.
“Democracy issues are particularly potent, making them a top priority in both states. Trump's allies in Arizona launched the infamous election audit after the president's 2020 defeat.” The Republican Party is literally run by the fake electors Trump indicted. Democrats, independents, and moderate Republicans unite to defeat far-right candidates in these states who ignore President Trump's lies. “We did,” Kanninen said.
To win both states, Biden will need to revitalize his 2020 coalition and mobilize new voters. Kaninen said the campaign is focused on the diverse electorate in both states, including AAPI, Latinx, Black, Indigenous, youth and women voters, and that Biden also wants to strengthen support from union members. .
In two interviews with Spanish-language stations that aired Tuesday, Biden slammed his predecessor's comments about immigrants and Latinos.
“This man (Trump) has contempt for Latinos. I understand the values of Latinos,” he said. “You know, we just celebrated St. Patrick's Day. I hope you won't be offended by me saying this, but you know, for the Irish people who came here. , they think about their families, they think about their faith, they think about them,” Biden said on Univision's “El Bueno, La Mara y El Feo.”
He added, “Latinos were essential to my victory in 2020, and once again they are essential and working hard to get out the vote.” The first advertising campaign in English and Spanish to communicate directly to Latino voters about our work. This campaign is organized on the ground in the Latinx community. ”
The Sunbelt Swing is part of the Biden campaign's March Month of Action, which builds on what the campaign considered a successful State of the Union address in which it visited every battleground state. Senior campaign advisers say the western states, along with the so-called Blue Wall and two southern states, are key to the path to 270 electoral votes.
“Across the Southwest, Donald Trump and his extreme MAGA policies have taken over the Republican establishment, creating deep divisions among traditional Republican voters and paving the way for Democrats, which is a growing trend. line,” Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez wrote. Note.
In the weeks since the State of the Union, Biden has visited New Hampshire as well as Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, and his campaign may pick up President Kamala Harris and Vice President Kamala Harris. He plans to visit North Carolina, which he views as a state. Next week's opportunity.
This includes the campaign expanding its brick-and-mortar presence with more than 100 new offices and 350 new team members (including 40 across Nevada and Arizona), according to Chavez-Rodriguez's memo. He said he was in the process of expanding his activities on the battlefield.
Jacqueline Martin/Associated Press
President Joe Biden arrived at a campaign event at El Portal Restaurant in Phoenix on Tuesday.
During his first stop in the Reno, Nevada area, Biden met with local leaders and campaign volunteers in Washoe County, which Kanninen said was “a swing county that has been critical to Democratic victories in recent cycles.” ”.
Biden travels He heads to Las Vegas on Tuesday, where he will highlight a plan to combat rising housing costs that the White House says will help open up the housing market for first-time homebuyers and improve affordability for renters. He called on Congress to pass the proposed bill. The state has a shortage of affordable rental housing for very low-income residents, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
“For too many people, the dream of owning a good home still feels out of reach. I get it,” the president told an audience at a Las Vegas community center, many wearing union T-shirts. (was wearing one). “As more people move to Nevada for good-paying jobs, there is a need for affordable housing.”
In making his pitch, Biden outlined his proposals, many of which would require action from Congress, in plain language.
“Nevada is the perfect place to launch the president's State of the Union housing goals and housing policies,” Biden senior adviser Gene Sperling said. Because while Nevada is a state that has benefited from the housing provisions of the coronavirus relief package passed in 2021, it also needs much more.
To that end, Biden proposed $258 billion in housing investments in the budget he submitted to Congress earlier this month. It calls on Congress to pass a two-year, $10,000 mortgage relief deduction for middle-class first-time homebuyers, proposes new policies and regulations to reduce closing costs, and proposes new policies and regulations to reduce closing costs. It calls for providing tax credits and competitive grant funds to build affordable housing.
And for renters, Biden is calling on Congress to require federal agencies to combat rent gouging by corporate landlords, crack down on rents, and expand housing choice vouchers from households above 100,000 to households above 500,000. There is.
“People are tired of making people play for assholes, and I'm tired of making them play for assholes,” he said in Las Vegas, drawing applause. Ta.
While many of the provisions that require legislative approval could be fraught with a divided Congress in an election year, administration officials told reporters that the policy is “incredibly bipartisan” at the state level. He said that.
He arrived in Phoenix late Tuesday, giving a speech at a local Mexican restaurant and launching his campaign's “Latinos for Biden-Harris” initiative. This organizing effort includes online and in-person training and messaging sessions for Latino supporters, as part of a campaign to strengthen bilingual organizers and open offices in areas with Latino communities. It will be done.
“I was able to defeat Donald Trump in large part because of you. … Kamala and I desperately need your help,” Biden said at the restaurant. “Because there are only six or seven states that will decide the outcome of this election. Those are toss-up states, and this is one of them.”
The president is also scheduled to speak in the Phoenix area on Wednesday on the topic of “Investing in America.” The president aims to boost U.S. chip manufacturing, and the event is expected to include major funding announcements related to CHIPS and the Science Act, according to people familiar with the plans.
Biden's trip this week will also pad his campaign coffers: The president will attend fundraisers in Dallas and Houston days after his campaign announced it raised $53 million in donations in February. He is expected to participate, a sign that donor interest is accelerating as Biden retains large sums of money. Better than Trump.
This article has been updated with additional reporting.
CNN's Donald Judd contributed to this report.
