COLUMBIA, S.C. — President Joe Biden will make a visit to the Midlands Thursday when he tours a company in West Columbia.
Travel plans released by the White House say the president will be arriving at Columbia Metropolitan Airport Thursday and then traveling to Flex LTD in West Columbia, where he'll make remarks about the nation's economy. Flex is a company that makes a variety of electronics that are shipped around the world.
The president has recently taken trips around the country to tout "Bidenomics," his plan for growing the economy from the middle-out and bottom-up. He and White House staff have also talked about the large, multi-million dollar infrastructure investments in areas such as broadband expansion, EV charging networks, and water and sewer upgrades in rural areas that have taken place under his Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The IRA is managed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development office and IRA programs have sent millions of dollars in grant monies to fund projects within the state of South Carolina.
This follows a trip by First Lady Dr. Jill Biden on Friday, June 30, where she gave a graduation ceremony speech at the US Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island.
Biden and the First Lady last visited the state in the summer of 2023, spending vacation time at Kiawah Island. However, the last time he appeared and made a speech in the Midlands was in December of 2021, when he spoke at a South Carolina State University graduation.
Biden announced in April that he would seek a second term. South Carolina will be an important step in the upcoming election as the Palmetto State will be the Democratic party's first primary during the 2024 Presidential primary season.
Republicans running for their primary have been crisscrossing the state, making appearances. On July 1, Former President Donald Trump held a rally in Pickens, South Carolina.