Editor’s note: This story was updated throughout the day Monday.
Vice President Kamala Harris is joining President Joe Biden for one of his Labor Day traditions by visiting Pittsburgh on Monday, hoping to rally the region’s large number of union members and continue Democrats’ momentum in the presidential campaign.
The Harris campaign said Harris and Biden would meet with local labor leaders at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers No. 5 on the city’s South Side. The event is part of a barnstorming blitz by Democrats across battleground states on Labor Day.
Harris supports unions, accuses Trump of being anti-labor, 6:12 p.m.
Vice President Kamala Harris has taken the stage for the keynote address.
“There are two visions here,” Harris said of the presidential campaign. “One, ours, is focused on the future. The other, theirs, is focused on the past. We fight for a future of dignity, respect and opportunity for all people.”
Harris said Trump wants to take the country backward, rolling back not just women’s rights but also organized labor gains. She said Trump’s behavior is not indicative of a leader.
“The measure of strength in a leader is who you beat down — that’s what they’re saying,” Harris said, and in a line that brought one of the biggest cheers of the night: “But we know the true strength of a leader is who do you raise up?”
Harris’ speech lasted around 15 minutes. As expected for the holiday, it focused on the importance of organized labor. Harris referenced Trump’s support for right-to-work laws. She also came out forcefully against the proposed sale of U.S. Steel to Japanese company Nippon Steel.
“U.S. Steel should remain American-owned and American-made. And I will always have your back,” she said addressing the Steelworkers union members.
Biden: ‘I’m not joking,’ 6:05 p.m.
President Joe Biden spoke about the importance of organized labor and “the dignity of work.”
Biden’s speech stuck to his hits and is similar to his last visit to Pittsburgh. He criticized Trump for claiming he was going to pass infrastructure funding, but never did.
“He promised infrastructure week for four years. He didn’t build a damn thing,” Biden said, peppering many of his points with “I’m not joking.”
“I promise if you elect Kamala Harris, it will be the best decision you ever made,” he said.
Biden and Harris take the stage, 5:46 p.m.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have taken the stage to chants of “Thank you, Joe!”
The White House Press Office said more than 600 people are attending the event in the hall, and the local fire marshal capped attendance at capacity.
About 300 people are gathered outside the venue to watch the presidential and vice presidential motorcades depart.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro praises labor leaders, 5:22 p.m.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro praised the work of organized labor in Pennsylvania.
“Organized labor didn’t just build this Commonwealth, organized labor built this country,” he said.
Shapiro addressed attacks that Trump and Republicans have made against Biden and Harris. He said under Biden and Harris, the U.S. is producing more energy than at any other time. He said Harris will make sure Pennsylvania is leading the energy economy for years to come.
PA Gov. Josh Shapiro has taken the stage at the Biden-Harris Labor Day campaign event ????????@JoshShapiroPA @GovernorShapiro @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/Ax1XWm0tIy
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Competing chants outside the venue, 5:19 p.m.
Harris supporters and pro-Trump protesters engaged in a back-and-forth outside the South Side venue.
Kamala supporters verbally clash with a Trump supporter Monday evening during a President Biden and VP Harris campaign stop in Pittsburgh’s South Side. @VNDNews @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/AFSmbnE52C
— Reporter Joyce Hanz (@hanz_joyce) September 2, 2024
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey takes the stage, 5:18 p.m.
Casey is on the campaign trail as well, running against Republican Dave McCormick.
“This race is a battle for rights,” Casey said. “Workers rights and women’s rights. … I’ve been on the side of working families, fighting on the side of labor against big corporations.”
A “Thank you, Bob!” chant broke out in the hall following those comments.
“While I was doing that, my opponent was making investments in China. I think we need a senator who’s working for Pennsylvania, not making investments in China.”
Event has begun with Lt. Gov. Davis, 5:09 p.m.
Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Austin Davis has taken the stage as the first speaker for today’s event.
“Let’s be clear, folks. The contrast in this race could not be more clear. Donald Trump is one of the most anti-worker, anti-union presidents in our history,” Davis said. “He hurt auto workers, shipped jobs overseas and lined the pockets of the wealthy at the expense of workers. We know who’s better for working families, and that’s Kamala Harris. I trust Kamala Harris with my daughter’s future.”
The first speaker has started — @AustinDavisPA @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/uyjV2a9JTb
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Music has Harris ‘ready for it,’ 5:01 p.m.
The Harris campaign has chosen Taylor Swift’s “Ready For It” as one of its musical anthems. It’s currently playing in the hall.
????@taylorswift13 is playing at the Biden-Harris Labor Day campaign event here in Pittsburgh???? @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/RUwe4H2il4
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Guests taking the stage, 4:51 p.m.
Presidential candidate Kamala Harris’s Labor Day campaign stop in Pittsburgh is getting underway, with guests starting to take the stage at IBEW Local No. 5.
The Biden-Harris Labor Day event is starting here in Pittsburgh @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/asQsVmdt1s
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Outside the union building, a group of about a dozen pro-Trump protesters gathered with signs.
Harris-Biden protesters hold signs along Hot Metal St. Monday afternoon while President Biden and VP Harris campaign inside IBEW Local Union #5 in Pittsburgh. @VNDNews @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/RglBkKMhtc
— Reporter Joyce Hanz (@hanz_joyce) September 2, 2024
The room is ready, 4:05 p.m.
Attendees and supporters are awaiting the start of this afternoon’s Harris campaign event at IBEW Local No. 5 on Pittsburgh’s South Side.
Here’s a .5 shot of the crowd awaiting @POTUS and @VP here in Pittsburgh’s South Side @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/XLoE5w88JB
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Biden, Harris arrive in Pittsburgh, 3:45 p.m.
Happening now: President Biden and VP Harris arrive in Pittsburgh. @VNDNews @POTUS @TribLIVE @VP pic.twitter.com/LoTTWN11eU
— Reporter Joyce Hanz (@hanz_joyce) September 2, 2024
A motorcade carrying President Biden and Vice President Harris has arrived in Pittsburgh.
Faces in the crowd
Cousins Lila Samuels of Johnstown and Renee Powell of New Jersey took a road trip to attend Monday’s event.
From reporter @hanz_joyce, cousins Lily Samuels and Renee Powell talk about their reasons for attending today's Harris campaign event. pic.twitter.com/8nX9imusbT
— Patrick Varine - Tribune-Review (@VarineTrib) September 2, 2024
Greg Vogt, 35, of Monroeville is attending the campaign event Monday afternoon.
Meet Greg Vogt. He’s been a union member since 2007 and works as an electrician for Hatzel & Buehler, Inc. in Pittsburgh @TribLIVE
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Vogt, 35, of Monroeville, said Harris has his vote this fall — and he’s especially a fan of her running mate Tim Walz.
“He’s a union man.” pic.twitter.com/0YAsGoVwZ0
Vogt, a member of IBEW Local No. 5, has attended every Labor Day Parade in the city since 2007.
He said he’s not a fan of Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel, a topic that many anticipate will come up during Monday’s appearances by Biden and Harris.
“I do not support that,” Vogt said. “I support an American company buying an American company.”
However, if the deal goes through, Vogt said, if Nippon Steel is true to its word about setting certain rules in stone, he can “understand” the sale.
“I think they need to be held accountable for any law that they break,” he said.
Vogt also talked about unconventional gas drilling, or fracking, saying he didn’t feel it brought as much money into the state as some think.
“A lot of Pennsylvanians didn’t get jobs for that,” he said, adding that fracking jobs should have gone to local union members, “or at the very least Pennsylvania workers.”
Vogt said unions enable workers to be protected from their employers, treated fairly and paid a good wage. His top issues in the 2024 election are paid family leave, the Second Amendment, unions and climate change.
Mark Todd of Robinson is planning to shoot photos outside the campaign event.
Democrat Matt Todd isn’t invited to today’s Biden-Harris campaign stop scheduled for late afternoon inside IBEW Local Union 5 in Pittsburgh—but that’s not stopping him from showing his support for VP Harris. pic.twitter.com/TT4qT7AKVN
— Reporter Joyce Hanz (@hanz_joyce) September 2, 2024
“I like to be part of the excitement and energy that’s going on here,” Todd said. “I really like photographing these events, sharing that content and hopefully spreading the message.”
Jean Stevenson, 57, of Carrick, is working the Biden-Harris event Monday for a local catering company. Stevenson, who is on the executive board for Unite Here, a labor union representing 300,000 workers in the U.S. and Canada, said unions are very important.
Meet Jean Stevenson. She’s been part of her union — Unite Here Local 57 — for 25 years here in Pittsburgh. @TribLIVE
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Stevenson, 52, of Carrick, works at the Wyndham Grand hotel downtown as a banquet server, and she’s working the Biden-Harris event today for a catering company. pic.twitter.com/D5aus5t4vj
“It’s just security, benefits, pension — it means a lot,” she said.
Stevenson, a registered Democrat, said she’s excited to hear what Harris has to say.
“I think she’s for the union people,” she said. “I think she’s for the people. I just think she’s a better candidate.”
TribLive also spoke with Democratic candidate for attorney general Eugene DePasquale.
Democratic nominee for Attorney General Eugene DePasquale told @TribLIVE he walked to the Biden-Harris campaign event today in Pittsburgh’s South Side.
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
“I’m glad I was able to walk here,” said DePasquale, of Uptown.
Thread for full interview with @DePasqualePA: pic.twitter.com/F5KDp4sZEq
Post-parade on the South Side
Following the morning’s Labor Day Parade, a slow stream of people began filling up IBEW No. 5’s union hall for lunch and to attend the afternoon’s campaign event.
I’m here at the IBEW Local Union #5 in Pittsburgh’s South Side — where President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris are set to hold a campaign event this Labor Day.
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) September 2, 2024
Stay tuned for live coverage ????????@TribLIVE @RyanDeto @shanedunlap @hanz_joyce @Massoud151 @POTUS @VP pic.twitter.com/qAEF3iRUtb
There is heavy police presence in the area and road closures surrounding the block where the union hall is located. Secret Service and local police are monitoring entrances to the union building, a well-known gathering place for local Democrats.
A man dressed in a tri-corner hat, riding a bike with two large flags supporting Donald Trump’s candidacy, was the only protester in the early afternoon.
Holiday campaign events focused on — what else? — labor
Harris was starting Monday in Detroit, the nerve center of the United Auto Workers labor union, before joining Biden in Pittsburgh. Biden has visited Pittsburgh on Labor Day several times over the years, including marching in the city’s annual parade.
Below, invited attendees check in for the afternoon’s campaign event.
Invited attendees check-in Monday afternoon outside of IBEW Local Union 5 in Pittsburgh before a scheduled afternoon campaign appearance by President Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris. pic.twitter.com/V7mcqWk6nS
— Reporter Joyce Hanz (@hanz_joyce) September 2, 2024
Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, was campaigning in Milwaukee on Monday and then joining Harris’ husband, Douglas Emhoff, at a Labor Day event in Newport News, Va. The Harris-Walz campaign said it also was sending surrogates to other battleground states, including North Carolina, Nevada and Georgia.
Organized labor could be key for Democrats’ chances come November, particularly in swing states like Nevada, home to tens of thousands of union members in the service industry, and Pennsylvania, with a rich history of organized labor in the industrial sector.
Campaign merch for sale Monday along Hot Metal St. in advance of this afternoon’s visit by President Biden and Vice-President Harris @ IBEWLocal Union #5 in Pittsburgh. pic.twitter.com/uwPCH6D9QT
— Reporter Joyce Hanz (@hanz_joyce) September 2, 2024
The Harris campaign has garnered several large union endorsements this cycle, including from the Pittsburgh-based United Steelworkers and Iron Workers International, which traces its roots back to Pittsburgh.
“The Biden-Harris administration is the most pro-union administration in history. Under President Biden and Vice President Harris’ leadership, support for union membership has grown to its highest level in half a century,” the Harris campaign said in a press release.
Labor union leaders in Pittsburgh and Detroit have embraced Biden and Harris.
Biden met with the steelworkers union in April at their Downtown Pittsburgh headquarters. He has voiced opposition to the pending sale of U.S. Steel to Japanese steel giant Nippon Steel.
Harris has yet to detail her stance on the pending sale, and Monday could provide an opportunity to share her stance with Western Pennsylvanians.
Republicans have also been laser-focused on Western Pennsylvania as of late.
Former President Donald Trump held a rally in Johnstown on Friday, and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, campaigned in Erie on Wednesday.
On Friday, Trump downplayed Harris’ recent attempts to win over Pittsburgh-area voters. He criticized Harris’ changing stance over fracking and said he has always supported the natural gas industry.
In 2019, Harris said she backed a ban on fracking. But this year, Harris said she supports the practice and has noted that the domestic natural gas production hit record levels in 2022 and 2023.
“She’s vowed repeatedly to ban fracking,” Trump said Friday. “The people of Pennsylvania are smart. They will not fall for it. If you do not have fracking, you do not have a commonwealth.”
Pennsylvania is figuring prominently in the race for the White House.
Both Harris-Walz and Trump-Vance will be giving Pennsylvania its due as a crucial swing state whose prize is 19 Electoral College votes.
Harris introduced Walz as her running mate at an August event in Philadelphia. The pair visited Allegheny and Beaver counties two weeks ago on a Western Pennsylvania bus tour.
Trump survived an assassination attempt on July 13 in Butler County, and he has since returned to Pennsylvania, appearing in Wilkes-Barre and York. Vance visited a VFW hall in Lower Burrell last month.
Allegheny-Fayette Central Labor Council President Darrin Kelly said he appreciates Harris and Biden visiting Pittsburgh on Labor Day.
“It is fitting that he and Vice President Harris will be back here with us, on our day, as we celebrate all that their administration has accomplished for working families and commit ourselves to the final months of the fight to elect Kamala Harris so we can keep moving forward together,” Kelly said.
