Biden talks up Social Security in courting Teamsters endorsement

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Tuesday made Social Security a key part of his pitch to the Teamsters leadership in a closed-door meeting as the powerful labor union weighs its 2024 endorsement.

Speaking with the leadership board, Biden discussed labor issues and Social Security a day after former President Donald Trump said in a CNBC interview that “there is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting.”

As in his State of the Union address last week, Biden did not refer to Trump by name but instead called him "the former president," according to Teamsters vice president at-large John Palmer, who attended Tuesday's meeting.

Biden "got really passionate about Social Security" and cited Trump's recent comments, Palmer said. He added that Biden used what he called a "Joe-ism" when he was talking about Trump, saying, "C'mon, man."

The union has yet to endorse a presidential candidate. It usually waits until after the party conventions, spokesperson Kara Deniz said.

Asked whether the union will follow its traditional schedule this year, Deniz said, “We have a process we are following, and the roundtable is a part of that.”

The Republican National Convention is in July, followed by the Democratic convention in August.

Some Teamsters want the union to endorse Biden “sooner rather than later,” Palmer said. He counts himself in that group.

“Every day matters, especially about getting in front of the membership and explaining to them why. I mean, the differences couldn’t be any more stark,” Palmer said of Biden and Trump.

In a post on X about Tuesday's meeting, the union said it “is conducting national polling of the membership and will begin work with its 360 local union affiliates to convene townhalls to