When it Matters Most, This Sitting President Takes a Stand

Joe Biden made history on Tuesday in the best way possible when he joined a picket line of striking workers in Wayne County, Michigan. This is—as far as anybody can tell—the first time on record in which a sitting President of the United States has made such an extraordinary display of solidarity with America’s working class.

President Biden made the decision seem easy and yet it’s undeniable that the politics surrounding it are quite challenging. Every president is obligated to walk ethical and executive tightropes. Some, like Biden’s predecessor and current rival, gleefully shirk that obligation in selfish pursuit of their own personal agenda.

Presently, the United Auto Workers union is demanding eminently-reasonable concessions from some of America’s biggest automotive manufacturers: General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis (parent company of Chrysler). At a time in which these companies are reporting record profits, 15 years after automotive workers and unions made enormous concessions to help prop up the industry and protect their bosses during the 2008 crisis, UAW rightly expects a degree of reciprocity from the C-Suite who (per usual) are reluctant to give it.

UAW’s month-long targeted strikes, running in parallel with the WGA writers’ strike in Hollywood, have earned national attention. They also carry a risk of economic consequence, particularly for President Biden, who is seen by most Americans as being weak on the economy despite presiding over its extraordinary recovery from the pandemic.

There’s another dimension to this political risk: that of Biden being perceived as unfairly putting his thumb on the scale for either party during the fragile negotiations between UAW and G.M., Ford, and Stellantis.

Despite all this as we head into another nail-biter of an election year against an authoritarian mobster going for broke in the form of Donald Trump… President Biden publicly accepted a public invitation by UAW leader Shawn Fain to join the picket line.

And on Tuesday, 9/26, the most powerful man in the world showed up to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with members of America’s working class, affirming their mission and celebrating their efforts.

There’s no telling what will come of all this. At the time of writing, the strike continues. UAW has publicly thanked the President, but has not officially endorsed him. They rejected a meeting with Donald Trump. Bad faith Republicans are spinning more aggressively than an orb weaver spider near your front porch, claiming that Biden is singlehandedly responsible for the conditions which precipitated the strike in the first place.

And yet, despite the political risk and lack of immediate political reward, Joe Biden did the right thing anyway: when it mattered most to those shoved to their knees under the weight of corporate greed, the sitting President took a stand.