President Joe Biden left his northern Delaware home Monday morning after the president kicked off the 2024 campaign with harsh words for former President Donald Trump.
The president traveled from New Castle to a political event in South Carolina. In 2020, his struggling presidential campaign was revived by a primary victory in that state. Biden will then travel to Texas to pay his respects to a former member of Congress who recently passed away before returning to the White House late Monday night.
In the speech near Valley Forge on Friday, Biden said Trump’s lies led to his followers leading to the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol, Axios reported. The location was chosen due to its historical significance as the place where Washington and troops braved a harsh winter after the British took Philadelphia.
Biden faces a tough re-election battle, with the former president the odds-on favorite to win the Republican nomination and polls showing low favorability ratings for the president despite positive news on the economy. On Friday, strong job growth figures were reported.
During the campaign, the president is expected to press claims that Trump is a threat to democracy based on statements reminiscent of those made by Hitler and other authoritarian figures. Trump continues to praise authoritarian leaders in Hungary and China in his speeches and social media postings as he deals with criminal and civil trials.
Biden probably spent time on the phone with his advisors after it was learned that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, was in intensive care, with administration officials, for a time, not being informed of his condition.
Biden’s visits, which have become less frequent as his campaign gears up, add a modest boost to the Wilmington and Rehoboth economies as aides, security, and others accompany the president.
Biden moved his 2024 campaign headquarters from its 2020 location in Philadelphia to downtown Wilmington.
