Susan Walsh/AP
President Joe Biden listens during a meeting with the President’s Advisory Council on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Sept. 25, 2023.
CNN –
Confusion reigned on the eve of Joe Biden’s trip to Michigan on Tuesday as the White House struggled to finalize the president’s plans to visit striking auto workers and lawmakers remained unclear about his itinerary.
On Monday afternoon, members of the United Auto Workers at a picket line site were told that Biden would be coming to their site, only to learn later that that tentative plan had been scrapped. With no announced plan from the White House, speculation spread through UAW ranks that Biden would go to the picket line closest to the airport. There was even a rumor on Monday that Biden’s trip might be canceled altogether – a possibility that a White House official flatly denied.
It is highly unusual for a presidential visit at such a late hour to be so marked by uncertainty.
Meanwhile, even late Monday, members of the White House press corps planning to cover the president’s visit were unsure exactly where to go in Wayne County. Several Michigan Democrats said they received no advance information from the White House.
The complicated logistics surrounding the president’s hastily announced visit were described to CNN by people familiar with the planning. One person at the scene described the process as “chaotic” and “a mess.”
In many ways, the planning reflected the delicate politics of the White House’s unusual decision to send Biden in solidarity with union workers amid an active strike. Biden had previously declined to do so to avoid the impression that he was taking sides in an ongoing labor dispute.
Last week, the White House scaled back plans for top aides — acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and senior adviser Gene Sperling — to visit Detroit to offer to broker talks. The change raised questions about what the government might do in a situation where it has no legal or legislative authority to intervene, while also highlighting the extremely sensitive nature of the ongoing negotiations.
The White House attempted to draw a tricky distinction on Monday by saying that Biden’s participation in the auto workers’ strikes did not signal that he supported specific demands that the UAW might make in negotiations.
“He stands with the workers,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. However, she added: “We are not involved in negotiations. They have to decide that.”
Later in the day, reporters sought to clarify his position, asking Biden directly whether he specifically supported some of the demands that workers are currently demanding from the Big Three automakers.
“Yes, I support — I have always supported the UAW,” Biden told reporters on Monday.
The possibility of Biden running against former President Donald Trump again next year gave political significance to Tuesday’s visit to Michigan. Trump is also traveling to Michigan this week, with a prime-time speech to union members scheduled for Wednesday evening.
Biden, who frequently describes himself as the “most pro-union” president the country has ever seen, hopes to win the UAW’s coveted political support again before 2024.
Democratic Rep. Dan Kildee of Michigan, who said he has been in close contact with Sperling and others regarding the strike, said senior administration officials have described the current situation as a “full circle” moment.
“The [auto] Companies were in trouble. Both workers and the federal government played important roles in keeping companies afloat. Now they’re so highly profitable that it’s time to close the loop,” Kildee said. “Let’s get the workers back to where they were before they and the federal government bailed out the auto companies.”
Since the early days of the Biden administration, the White House has sought to avoid appearing to influence negotiations with third parties, including Justice Department investigations into labor disputes. Biden has argued that his predecessor disregarded the independence of such processes.
The White House denied Monday that Trump’s decision to visit Michigan took Biden’s plans into account.
“Absolutely not,” said Jean-Pierre.