On Tuesday vice President Kamala Harris visited the construction site of a new ramp to connect I-95 to the Betsy Ross Bridge. She met laborers working on the project, many of whom also worked to fix the portion of the roadway that collapsed after a fatal tanker truck fire in June. On a ramp construction site that was also funded by the bipartisan infrastructure bill Harris said the administration was “investing in American businesses, American labor, its union labor.”
She made her second trip to Philadelphia in three months – sandwiched between two trips by Vice President Biden – as she announced that the administration would revise federal law that sets a minimum wage for construction workers.
‘We strongly believe workers deserve fair wages for their efforts,” Ms. Harris said.- Our goal is to update this law and raise wages for workers across the country.”
The revisions may result in a pay raise for 1 million construction workers working on $200 billion of federally funded projects. More than 80% of those workers do not have a college degree, administration officials said.
Besides Ms. Harris’ two visits, Mr. Biden has stopped in Philadelphia six times so far in 2023.
According to local media, “the story of I-95 reopening is a perfect campaign trail anecdote for Biden’s administration in a key swing state. During his reelection campaign, Biden has focused on the thousands of infrastructure projects that the bill will fund. Government-funded union construction projects are typically in their early stages, so I-95 shows the impact that government-funded union construction work can produce”.
“This administration understands that they won’t have another term in the White House without the sign-off of Pennsylvania voters, and their events calendar reflects that,” said Zack Kennedy, a former Democratic operative with experience in Pennsylvania campaigns.
The main artery of the city, I-95, periodically attracts the attention of politicians, especially behind elections. And with the permanent highway still under construction for more than 30 years, politicians will have a never-ending opportunity to take advantage of the voters’ attention on its redevelopment.
