In Philly, Biden accepts endorsement from Kennedy family members and visits a Wawa; Trump to hold May rally in Wildwood

The mayor and commissioners of Wildwood announced that former President Donald Trump will hold a campaign rally on the beach on May 11.

“What a great boost to our town at the start of the summer season! We host hundreds of large capacity events annually, so the city is ready to welcome the crowds and looks forward to making the weekend successful for everyone,” Mayor Ernie Troiano, Jr. and Commissioners Steve Mikulski and Krista McConnell said in a joint statement.

Following a controversial (by Philadelphia standards) pit stop at Sheetz a day earlier, President Joe Biden stopped at Wawa Thursday afternoon.

Biden’s order from the Independence Mall location included an Italian hoagie (with American cheese and pickles) and a black-and-white milkshake.

Following his remarks, President Joe Biden popped into a smaller room down the hall at the recreation center where campaign volunteers, supporters, and members of the Kennedy family were set up with paperwork to learn how to door canvas and make phone calls on his behalf.

A brief training didn't last two minutes before the widely expected special guest arrived.

Attendees left the Philadelphia event energized by the Kennedys’ strong endorsement of President Joe Biden.

“The president is going to win Pennsylvania again. He’s going to be elected again,” said state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta Jr., a Democrat who is running for auditor general. “And it’s going to be in part because he’s doing what it takes to speak to everybody in every corner of the commonwealth.”

In a brief speech in Philadelphia, President Joe Biden accepted the endorsement of members of the Kennedy family and called out former President Donald Trump for saying he’d be a dictator on day one if reelected.

“The 2024 election is about two fundamentally different visions for America,” Biden said Thursday at a rec center in North Philadelphia. “Donald Trump's vision is one of anger, hate, revenge and retribution. He embraces the insurrectionists of January 6, he’s running on it… And he calls for a another bloodbath when he loses again.”

Former Philadelphia state Rep. John White Jr., introduced President Joe Biden and the Kennedys ahead of Thursday's speech, and recalled how Biden’s example helped him after the death of his wife.

“He balanced grief with public service commitment. His example helped me get through my own personal sorrow and pain,” White Jr. said.

About two dozen protesters waited for President Joe Biden’s arrival outside the Martin Luther King Recreation Center in North Philadelphia, referring to him as “Genocide Joe.”

Some banged instruments to the beat of their chants, while others held Palestinian flags. They stood behind barricades lined with signs that read “End all US aid to Israel! Fund Healthcare!”, “Asians for a liberated Palestine”, “Stop the massacre of Palestinians, Stop the killing of children,” and signs blaming the media.

About an hour before President Joe Biden was scheduled to speak in Philadelphia, an unidentified man was escorted out of the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreational Center in North Philadelphia while screaming, "I have a right to be here."

The outburst occurred as people were still filling in ahead of Biden's speech, and as Kerry Kennedy was doing an interview with reporters.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. responded to news several of his family members would endorse Biden in Philadelphia today, commending them for being “politically active.”

“We are divided in our opinions but united in our love for each other,” Kennedy Jr., said on X.

Hours before President Joe Biden was scheduled to speak, supporters excitedly filtered into the Martin Luther King Recreation Center in North Philadelphia and posed for photos in front of campaign signs.

In an event marked by endorsements from members of the Kennedy family attendees showed mixed concern over the role of third party candidates like Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

The Pennsylvania primary is right around the corner, taking place on Tuesday.

Although Pennsylvania is considered a critical swing state in this year’s presidential election, its voters hold less sway in each party’s primary. That’s because the state holds its primary relatively late in the process, in late April.

President Joe Biden will be endorsed by members of the Kennedy family during his visit to Philadelphia Thursday, a prominent showing of support from the relatives of one of his likely opponents, that wraps a three-day Pennsylvania swing aimed at reassembling a coalition, seven months ahead of the general election.

The event, at a recreation center in North Philadelphia this afternoon, will feature 15 members of the Kennedy family endorsing Biden over one of their relatives Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is running for president as an Independent.

President Joe Biden is ending a three-day tour of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where he hasn’t been a stranger since being elected in 2020.

Biden most-recent visit to the commonwealth took him from his childhood home in Scranton on Tuesday to Pittsburgh yesterday, where he signaled his willingness to crack down on China for potentially anticompetitive trade practices with aluminum and steel.

Pennsylvania’s importance as a swing state in general elections is in evidence by the fact that presidential nominees all-but qualify for Keystone frequent-visitor passes during the campaigns. (Note that they don’t seem to spend much time in all-blue Jersey.)

But only twice in the last 50 years has Pennsylvania been center-stage in presidential primaries. In 1976, Jimmy Carter began his campaign in Philadelphia by apologizing for stating that the federal government should not get involved in trying to change the “ethnic purity” of neighborhoods. Carter survived the controversy and all but secured the Democratic nomination by winning in Pennsylvania, foreshadowing the commonwealth’s role in sending him to the White House.

When Pennsylvania holds its primary election on April 23, Democrats and Republicans will select their picks to vie to be the state’s chief fiscal watchdog.

The auditor general is responsible for conducting reviews of government departments and agencies to ensure that taxpayer money is spent properly and that programs meet their goals.