Biden and Trump Face Off in Georgia with Competing Events This Saturday

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will both be hosting events in Georgia on Saturday as they gear up for the upcoming election.

Biden will be in the Atlanta area as part of his tour following the State of the Union address. He will be spending the next month focusing on connecting with swing state voters and sharing his message directly with them.

Meanwhile, Trump will also be in Georgia, hosting a rally in the northwest corner of the state. He is increasing his political activities in preparation for the general election.

Their first face-to-face meetings along a stretch of Georgia highway will provide an early glimpse into the different approaches to attracting voters who may not be excited about another Biden-Trump showdown. Georgia, where Biden narrowly won by less than 12,000 votes in the last election, is seen as a crucial battleground state that will set the tone for how voters are reacting to campaign efforts.

According to Fred Hicks, a Democratic strategist from Georgia, the state has been a focal point of national politics since 2018. It is fitting that Georgia is the initial key stop after the State of the Union address, where the president is kickstarting his campaign, while Donald Trump is aiming to build up his momentum.

In Georgia, both Trump and Biden are at a crucial point in the presidential race. Trump's recent rally, his first as the presumptive nominee, followed his success in the Super Tuesday contests and led to Nikki Haley ending her campaign. The upcoming primaries in Georgia and three other states could further solidify his nomination.

On the other hand, Biden's recent State of the Union address showed a clear shift towards the upcoming political challenge. Although he didn't mention Trump by name, he repeatedly referred to "my predecessor" and emphasized the importance of the November election in his nearly 70-minute speech.

It’s the second-split screen appearance by the two men in as many weeks. Last month, Biden and Trump visited the US-Mexico border on the same day.

Biden hits the battlegrounds

Saturday marks the second planned trip of the month for Biden's team to strengthen the president's State of the Union message and support infrastructure development. This initiative is part of the "I'm on Board" campaign. Biden recently visited a middle school in the Philadelphia area.

photo illustration by Alberto Mier/CNN/Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

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Biden’s State of the Union address was recently analyzed and verified for accuracy.

Campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez shared with reporters on Friday that the team is working on exciting new initiatives. They are focusing on increasing volunteer involvement, expanding battleground staff, forming coalition groups, and launching new paid media campaigns.

Biden and Harris are scheduled to visit every battleground state in the upcoming weeks, according to the campaign. Biden's next stops include New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and Michigan.

Rodriguez stated, "During this month of action, we will actively engage and mobilize the diverse Biden-Harris coalition."

Saturday's trip to Georgia was important for Democrats, as the state has played a crucial role in their recent victories in the White House and the Senate.

Despite early polls showing Trump in the lead, the Biden campaign will need to work hard to mobilize voters in Georgia without the support of key down ballot candidates, as the Senate race will not be as decisive as it was in 2020.

Andrew Heaton, a Democratic strategist who previously worked for Georgia Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock, expressed concern about the upcoming election. He mentioned that without any significant statewide races or notable items on the ballot, encouraging voter turnout will be a challenging task.

Democratic strategists emphasize the importance of addressing Black men as part of the winning coalition that President Biden will need to focus on.

Hicks emphasized that many Black voters are not aware of Biden's policies, such as his initiatives to reduce healthcare expenses and combat price gouging.

According to Hicks, there is a lack of awareness because they are disconnected from the policies being discussed in Washington, DC. They assume that these policies are well-known and have an impact outside of the DC bubble, but that is not the reality. It is important for them to communicate and inform people about their accomplishments.

This week, MAGA, Inc, a super PAC aligned with Trump, started a radio ad campaign targeting Black voters in battleground states. Georgia had the biggest ad buy.

The Trump campaign believes there is an opportunity to reach out to Black voters who may feel marginalized by the Democratic Party. They are developing plans to attract these voters. Some Republicans were hopeful after polls in key battleground states last autumn showed Trump gaining support from Black voters.

Trump’s Georgia headwinds

But there are headwinds for Trump in Georgia as well – many of his own making.

After Trump lost Georgia in the 2020 election, he accused statewide Republican officeholders of hiding voter fraud without evidence. He also pressured Georgia election officials to "find" votes to overturn the election result in a phone call with Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Following Trump's defeat, Republican senators David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler lost their runoff elections to Democrats Jon Ossoff and Warnock. This resulted in Democrats gaining a slim majority in the Senate at the start of Biden's presidency. Many in the party attributed the lower party turnout in these runoff contests to Trump's refusal to accept the election results and his criticism of mail-in voting.

Trump blamed his loss in the 2020 election on Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Raffensperger, who refused to help him overturn the election results in the state. In response, Trump recruited primary challengers for both men in the 2022 election. However, Kemp and Raffensperger were reelected despite Trump's efforts.

In Georgia, Trump is facing legal troubles for his alleged attempts to interfere in the 2020 election. This adds to the list of legal battles he is dealing with while running for president. Trump has consistently criticized Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who filed the charges against him. A judge is expected to make a decision soon on whether to disqualify Willis due to her past relationship with the special prosecutor handling Trump's case.

One Republican strategist in the state expressed concern that Trump's behavior has caused swing voters to turn against him. As a result, many conservative-leaning independents and moderates in 2022 chose to split their tickets, voting for Kemp for governor and Warnock for Senate.

The strategist, who preferred to remain anonymous, warned that relying on polling data favoring Trump could be risky. According to the strategist, voters who support both Kemp and Warnock are not willing to even discuss Trump. They simply do not like him.

Interestingly, Trump and Kemp have not patched things up yet. Last year, Kemp mentioned that he would choose Trump over Biden, but he was not included in Trump's rally in the state. Even Republicans who support Trump are unsure if he can make the right changes to win Georgia.

Jule Windham, the local Republican Party chairman of Macon County in Middle Georgia, expressed his hope for Trump to be a gracious winner. He emphasized the importance of reaching out to the other side, a quality that has not always been associated with Trump. However, he acknowledged that some voters may be put off by Trump's personality rather than his policies.

According to a senior adviser, Trump's team plans to expand its campaign operations in Georgia in the upcoming weeks. The focus has already shifted to the general election, with a particular emphasis on addressing national concerns surrounding the influx of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border.

In recent weeks, there have been frequent mentions at campaign rallies of 22-year-old Laken Riley, a nursing student who was tragically killed by an undocumented immigrant while jogging on the University of Georgia campus. President Trump shared with his audiences that he had spoken to Riley's parents and connected her death to Biden's immigration policies.

Laken Riley's death continues to cast a shadow over Biden's visit, especially after it became a focal point during his State of the Union address this week. Some Republican members of Congress wore pins bearing her name, and she was even mentioned by Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, leading to a lively exchange between her and Biden during the speech.

Biden entered the House chamber and accepted a pin from Greene. He then expressed his condolences for the death of Lincoln Riley, a young woman who was mistakenly referred to as an illegal immigrant. Many Democrats find this term offensive.

Biden also offered his sympathy to Riley's parents, mentioning that he can relate to their pain as someone who has also lost a child.

Trump's rally is set to happen in Rome, which is located in Greene's Georgia district. Both Greene and another Georgia Republican, Rep. Mike Collins, are expected to be in attendance. Collins, who represents the district where Riley was killed, also extended an invitation to her parents to attend the State of the Union.

The tragic event involving Riley's death may potentially become more politicized in the coming months. Greene recently expressed to Biden during a direct conversation, "You're responsible for her murder."

Editor's P/S:

The upcoming presidential election is heating up, with both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump holding events in Georgia on Saturday. Georgia is seen as a crucial battleground state, and the outcome of the election could hinge on how voters in the state react to the candidates' campaigns.

Biden is focusing on connecting with swing state voters and sharing his message directly with them. He is also emphasizing the importance of the November election and the need to address national concerns such as the influx of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border. Trump, on the other hand, is increasing his political activities in preparation for the general election and is likely to focus on his own policies and accomplishments. The outcome of the election in Georgia will be closely watched, as it could provide an early glimpse into the different approaches to attracting voters who may not be excited about another Biden-Trump showdown. but he remains a popular figure among many voters. The upcoming election is likely to be close, and the outcome could have a significant impact on the national political landscape.