Harris says she opposes U.S. Steel’s sale to Japan’s Nippon Steel

Vice President Kamala Harris Joint campaign appearance with the President Joe Biden Pennsylvania, a key swing state, said on Monday that U.S. Steel should remain domestically owned – echoing White House opposition to the bill for months. Company plans to sell to Japan's Nippon Steel.

She made the remarks at a rally ahead of Labor Day celebrations in the industrial city of Pittsburgh. ”.

“U.S. Steel should continue to be American owned and operated, and I will always support American steelworkers,” she said.

That echoed Biden, who on Monday reiterated comments from March that he opposed the sale of U.S. Steel to Japanbelieving it would hurt the country's steelworkers. It also overlaps with Republican former President Donald Trump. It's not surprising that Harris agreed with Biden on the issue, but it still constitutes a major policy position for the vice president, who has offered relatively few positions since. Biden abandons re-election bid, endorses vice president July.

Biden took the stage first, and when he and Harris appeared at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers hall, people chanted “Thank you, Joe.”

The president called Harris the only “rational” choice for president in November. He said choosing her as vice president was the “best” decision of his presidency and told union members that electing her would be “the best decision you'll ever make.”

Biden also started saying, “Kamala Harris and I will build on this,” as if he was still running and she was his running mate — but he corrected himself. It underscores how much the race has changed and how Harris is careful to remain fiercely loyal to Biden and Biden while presenting herself as “a new path forward.” policy He has pushed.

Her performance is very different — in some cases, she has been forced to move faster than the Biden administration — but the overall goal of expanding government programs to boost the middle class is the same.

“We knew it was going to be a tight game until the end,” Harris told the Pittsburgh crowd.

The joint rally with Biden was Harris' second of the day, following one of the largest Labor Day parades in the country in Pittsburgh. It was their first joint campaign appearance since the election changes six weeks ago.

Harris kicked off her solo campaign on Labor Day at an event in Detroit, where hundreds of spectators wore bright yellow union shirts and held signs that read “Union Strong.” “Everyone in our country benefits from the work of unions,” the vice president said.

“Everywhere I go, I tell people, 'Listen, you might not be a union member, you better be grateful to the union members,'” Harris said, noting that collective bargaining through organized labor helps ensure that everyone Friday working hours.

“When unions are strong, America is strong,” she said.

Biden, 81, has developed close ties with labor groups for much of his long political career. The White House said he asked to introduce Harris in Pittsburgh instead of the usual reverse because he wanted to highlight her record of supporting union workers.

except against Nippon Steel Sale, Biden supports expanding tariffs On imports of Chinese steel – another area of ​​agreement with China trump cardHe welcomed higher foreign tariffs on many imported products. Still, U.S. Steel said in a statement Monday that it remains “committed to a transaction with Nippon Steel that is the best deal for our employees, shareholders, communities and customers.”

“Partnering with Nippon Steel, our close ally and long-term investor in the United States, Japan, will strengthen the U.S. steel industry, U.S. jobs and U.S. supply chains, and make the U.S. steel industry more competitive and resilient to China,” the company said. And pointed out that it has nearly 4,000 employees in Pennsylvania alone.

Nippon Steel responded to Harris' comments, saying it was confident that “acquiring U.S. Steel will reinvigorate the U.S. Steel Rust Belt, benefiting American workers, local communities and national security in a way that other alternatives cannot.” The Harris campaign issued a statement rebutting the views of United Steelworkers President David McCaul, who said Harris' opposition to the sale “makes clear once again that she will always support steelworkers.”

Harris, 59, is trying to appeal to voters by positioning herself as a break from former President Trump's vitriolic rhetoric while also looking to transcend the Biden era. Harris' events feel very different from Biden's events, which typically have small crowds. But the vice president's agenda includes the same issues he championed: limiting prescription drug costs, defending the Affordable Care Act, growing the economy, helping families afford child care — and now her stance on selling U.S. Steel.

The vice president pledged to work to lower grocery store costs to help combat inflation. She has moved faster than Biden in some cases, calling for using tax cuts and incentives to encourage homeownership and ending federal taxes on tips for service workers. But she also offered relatively few specifics on major policies, instead continuing to side with Biden on top issues.

Harris appeared on stage with Biden after the president spoke on opening night of the Democratic National Convention last month, but they have not shared a microphone at a political event since Biden himself ran against Trump. At the time, the campaign was largely leveraging Harris as its top spokesperson for abortion rights, an issue they believed could help them win in November as restrictions and access to abortion increased. health care Women's condition will worsen if Roe v. Wade fails.

Harris has been one of Biden's leading supporters for more than 3 1/2 years. Now the tables have turned, with Harris looking to lean on Biden, who hails from Scranton, Pa., to help win the potentially decisive state.

While the vice president has become more forceful in speaking out about the plight of civilians in Gaza as Israel's war with Hamas approaches 11 months, she has also supported Biden's efforts to arm Israel, reach a hostage deal and cease-fire. Biden and Harris met with the U.S. hostage deal negotiating team in the White House Situation Room earlier Monday before leaving Washington for Detroit.

“History will prove what we know: Joe Biden has been one of the most transformative presidents,” Harris said in Pittsburgh. “As we know, Joe has a lot of work to do.”

After the event, Biden and Harris took the presidential limousine back to the airport together. Air Force One and Air Force Two soon took off back to the Washington suburbs, although for continuity of government reasons the president and vice president never fly on the same plane in case of an in-flight emergency.