Biden to Highlight Rise in Small Businesses in Pennsylvania Visit

President Joe Biden is returning Friday to spread his "Bidenomics" message in Pennsylvania, a key state in the 2024 election that the president is fighting to secure in the general election.

The president will meet with several small business leaders in Allentown to hear directly from leaders about their business creation, policies that are working for them, and what the administration is doing to support them.

This is the second time the president has visited the state this year. He made a campaign stop on the third anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection at Valley Forge, where the president warned that Donald Trump is a threat to democracy.

Biden last year visited the state 11 times. Despite that, the president is neck and neck in polling in a hypothetical matchup with Trump, where 49% of those surveyed said they support Biden and 46% said they support Trump, according to a Quinnipiac University Poll published Wednesday.

The White House said Biden’s visit is aimed at showcasing Allentown's economic turnaround.

Michael Negron, special assistant to the president for economic policy, said Allentown is making a comeback since the president took office. He noted that 32,000 jobs have been added to the city, and the unemployment rate dropped from 6.4% to 3.9%. In addition, Negron said that new business applications are up 30% compared to before the pandemic.

Despite the administration highlighting a growing economy, many Americans have expressed dissatisfaction with the economy under Biden, which is among the top issues in the 2024 election. A majority of Americans (64%) have said they disapprove of how Biden has handled the economy, with just 36% saying they approve, according to a CBS News poll published Sunday. 

On inflation, 67% of Americans said they disapprove of Biden’s handling of the issue, while only one-third said they approve.

Small Business Administrator Isabel Guzman said the recent rise in small business applications, which reached nearly 16 million filed during Biden’s administration, shows the “hope” Americans feel in the U.S. economy.

“The President always talks about America being defined in one word and that's ‘possibilities,’” Guzman said. “And starting a new business really demonstrates the possibilities in America. It is an act of hope, and it's a belief not just in your own idea, but in the opportunities and the prosperity that is possible in one's community.”