COLUMBIA, S.C. — The White House announced President Joe Biden will visit South Carolina this week.
Biden is set to be here on Thursday, July 6, although the White House didn't specify where or why he'd be visiting.
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.
While details of the president's trip have yet to be released, Biden has recently been touting his "Bidenomics" -- his plan for growing the economy from the middle-out and bottom-up -- and large, multi-million dollar infrastructure investments in areas such as broadband expansion, EV charging networks, and water and sewer upgrades in rural areas.
Also, last week the administration was dealt a couple of setbacks by the US Supreme Court. First, the Court reversed affirmative action in college admission selections. Then the Court struck down Biden's student debt relief plan that would have canceled debt up to $20,000 in loans for qualified borrowers, saying the program exceeded executive authority. Biden has since released a new loan forgiveness plan that would work through the Higher Education Act of 1965.
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.
The state is also important to him politically, as he announced in April that he would seek a second term. There was also a major change to the Democrats' political calendar, as the Palmetto State will be the party's first primary during the 2024 Presidential primary season.
Republicans running for their primary have been crisscrossing the state, making appearances. On Saturday, Former President Trump held a rally in Pickens, South Carolina.