President Joe Biden promised to finish the job he started when he announced he was stepping down from his presidential campaign, and he made good on that promise yet again on Tuesday in Baltimore.
The President pledged $147 million in grants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the Port of Baltimore. He also reiterated his pledge to fully fund the replacement of the Key Bridge, a commitment must be made by Congress, which hasn’t yet passed legislation to fund the project at 100%.
“We won’t stop until the new bridge is finished completely,” President Biden said Tuesday at the Dundalk Marine Terminal in Baltimore. “I call on Congress to fully fund it this year.”
The new aid package is part of a $3 billion investment in national ports that was part of the Inflation Reduction Act signed by President Biden in 2022. Aimed at reducing pollution for port workers and surrounding communities and creating union jobs, it's part of the “Clean Ports” grant program that the state’s port administration applied for and is administered by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA lists the project start date as Feb. 1, 2025.
After his remarks at the Port, President Biden stopped by a local ice cream shop to get his favorite food. Asked why he wouldn't be joining Vice President Kamala Harris at her "Closing Argument" speech at the Ellipse, the President--who quietly voted early for VP Harris in his home state of Delaware--was his usual gracious self in giving VP Harris her moment.