First Lady Jill Biden visits Tampa for campaign swing through battleground states
TAMPA, Fla. - First Lady Jill Biden visited Tampa on Monday and spoke at a campaign event amid fallout for President Joe Biden from his debate performance.
The first lady stopped in several battleground states, including North Carolina and Georgia, according to the Associated Press, launching the president's outreach to veterans and military families.
Her daylong tour through the three states reflects a broader effort for the Biden campaign to rebound from the president's lackluster performance in his June debate against former President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 04: President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden watch the fireworks on the National Mall from the White House balcony during a 4th of July event on the South Lawn of the White House on July 4, 2024 in Washington, DC. The Presi
And, she was surrounded by fellow Democrats, military families, elected officials and activists when she made it clear – the time for talk about her husband leaving the presidential race is over.
"Joe has made it clear that he is all in," she said during her Tampa visit.
Several members of Congress and even Virginia Senator Mark Warner have signaled Biden should reconsider the rest of the campaign. Democrat Alan Clendenin, a senior member of the Florida Democratic Party, tweeted, "this election is about the next four years, not the last three and a half... Biden should step aside and allow Vice President Kamala Harris to carry forward his agenda."
First Lady Biden tried to change the conversation back to military families and veterans, highlighting bills the president signed, like the PACT Act for toxic burns, expanding access to the VA and the fact her own son served in Iraq.
TOPSHOT - US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visit a Biden-Harris campaign debate watch party in Atlanta, Georgia, on June 27, 2024, after President Biden debated former US President and Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump. (
"Let me ask you this: Do you think Donald Trump knows about any of that?" The first lady said.
But, it is Trump right now who is leading the polls. The RealClearPolitics average has the race at 47.5 to 44.1 in favor of Trump. In Florida, it's 50 to 43, in Pennsylvania it's 49-44 and in Wisconsin it's 48-46.
Jill Biden did not acknowledge that uphill battle in Tampa.
"The Supreme Court ruled there are virtually no limits on what a president can do," she said. "Our democracy can not withstand a Trump presidency with no limits."