Biden administration unfurls a 16-state rural tour beginning this week; events scheduled at several key election states

Photo by Meadow Marie, Unsplash

The Biden Administration is about to barnstorm rural America with visits to yonder places beginning this week, reports Garrett Downs of Politico. "With just over a year until the 2024 election, the White House announced more than a dozen trips to rural America by Biden, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and a slew of other administration officials."

Dubbed the "Investing in Rural America Event Series," the tour aims to "tout investments in rural areas through climate-smart agriculture, rural infrastructure, and a pro-competition agenda, among other priorities," Downs writes. It's also a preemptive effort to keep rural Americans focused on growing rural initiatives even as House Republicans seek "agriculture clawbacks in the farm bill" to balance the Inflation Reduction Act's $20 billion price tag. "The administration is hoping its sizable investments in new revenue streams for farmers. . . will pay dividends with skeptical rural voters and farmers," who have skewed Republican in recent elections.

Biden and Vilsack's first stop will be at a Minnesota family farm to "highlight the Biden-Harris Administration's investments in rural America and efforts to support local farmers and communities," according to a White House fact sheet. Downs adds, "Notably, Minnesota is a key battleground and the home state of Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.), who announced a primary challenge to Biden last week."

Deputy Ag. Secretary Xochitl Torres Small
(USDA photo)

Stops for Vilsack include a visit with a Future Farmers of America group in Indiana and visits in Wyoming and Colorado to talk on investment and conservation. Deputy Agriculture Secretary Xochitl Torres Small will "travel to battlegrounds Wisconsin and Michigan to 'highlight the Biden-Harris Administration's efforts to boost rural economic development and create new opportunities for rural families,'" Downs reports. Torres Small's background as the granddaughter of farm workers who immigrated from Mexico to pick cotton, has helped the administration build rapport with rural voters.

In all, 13 administration officials and Biden will visit 16 states, with states such as Indiana and Wyoming having more than one stop. Tour states include Minnesota, Wyoming, Colorado, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, New Mexico, Arizona, Iowa, Washington, Oregon, Georgia, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Kansas.