By Michael Shepherd - July 26, 2023
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The president goes to Auburn, a city that sums up his opportunities, proclivities and struggles. I broke the news that President Joe Biden will visit Auburn for the first Maine trip of his presidency on Friday. Details of the visit have not been announced yet, but the White House has said he will discuss economic policy and domestic manufacturing gains during his tenure.

Logistical hurdles generally mean presidents rarely stray far from big airports in Portland and Bangor, but the trip to Maine's contested 2nd Congressional District makes political sense as he kicks off his 2024 campaign. (I discussed this with CBS News 13's Gregg Lagerquist and Ronald Schmidt, a University of Southern Maine political scientist, on a Tuesday livestream.)

Auburn could be considered Maine's largest swing city. It was the biggest one to vote for former President Donald Trump in 2016 but switch to the Democratic president over Trump four years later. Despite his many legal troubles, Trump remains the favorite to win the Republican nod to take on Biden next year. Since 2020, nothing much has changed in the city.

Gov. Janet Mills won it over former Gov. Paul LePage in 2022. However, Auburn is better known for its conservative politicians. It has a Republican mayor in former congressional candidate Jason Levesque, who said last year that he plans to run for statewide office someday. Sen. Eric Brakey and Rep. Laurel Libby, two conservative Republicans from Auburn, are the most visible state lawmakers there, but two Democrats also sit in the city delegation.

Aside from politics, Auburn is both a historic and contemporary manufacturing center. Procter and Gamble operates a large Tampax factory there. When people come to the area to talk about making things, they often stop at Auburn Manufacturing Co., which makes heat-resistant textiles and has made headlines in recent years for fighting Chinese trade policies. (CEO Kathie Leonard did not respond to my emails on whether Biden is going there.) 

"I think that's big news, and I'm happy to share it with him and thank him for all he's done for Maine," Mills, who will join the president, told News Center Maine on Tuesday after praising the bipartisan infrastructure bill alongside other measures and developments during the Biden era.

That's probably a friendlier reception than Biden would get from locals. Since it voted for Trump seven years ago, Auburn should be considered at least a tick more conservative than the rest of Maine. Biden's approval numbers remain in the low 40s nationally. He was underwater in Maine in one April poll.

If you surveyed the crowd at Rolly's Diner this morning, you would be likely to find Biden opponents or skeptics in the majority. Yet Auburn remains exactly the kind of place to watch in the 2024 election, featuring a closely divided and open-minded electorate.

It also is a good place for Biden to be Biden. Recall his rare joint appearance with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, in January at an aging bridge connecting Cincinnati with the top lawmaker's home state. While Biden is presiding over one of the most polarizing times of the past few generations and he is polarizing himself, he considers himself a dealmaker.

Under Levesque, Auburn has gotten recognition for some of the nation's most permissive housing policies, standing in contrast to many other Maine cities and towns. It is easy to see something for Biden to call out on that front as well, making the political case for a visit to the city even stronger.