Vice President Kamala Harris visits Pittsburgh, talks child tax credit, infrastructure plan

Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in Pittsburgh for her daylong stay in the region as part of what is being dubbed “Child Tax Credit Awareness Day” by the Biden administration.

Air Force Two landed at Pittsburgh International Airport with the vice president just after 11 a.m. Monday.

Local dignitaries greet VP Kamala Harris as she arrives in Pittsburgh. pic.twitter.com/MGef9Vq9mI

— Debra Erdley (@deberdley_trib) June 21, 2021

As Harris’s motorcade wound its way from the airport to Brookline, Rosemarie Sapsara was already waiting at the corner of Breining and Oakridge streets. The 70-year-old wanted to catch a glimpse of the motorcade.

The last motorcade she’d seen, she said, was that of John F. Kennedy in the early 1960s, when he’d ridden past her childhood home in a convertible.

“I have a feeling it’s good for America,” Sapsara said of Harris’s visit to Pittsburgh.

Harris headed to the Brookline Memorial Recreation Center, where she spoke with a class of students and then delivered remarks on the Child Tax Credit. Many residents on the quiet, one-way Oakridge Street came outside to watch Harris pass by despite not being able to see through the vehicle’s tinted windows.

Some lamented that the visit fell on a Monday – it was garbage night. If she’d come a day later, they said, the street would have looked better.

Sapsara had walked down from her home on Brookline Boulevard, armed with a small American flag and her camera. She said she’d put in a new roll of film for the occasion.

As the motorcade drew near, first with scores of Pittsburgh police on motorcycles followed by marked and unmarked cars and SUVs, Sapsara squealed: “Oh, how exciting.”

Rosemarie Sapsara lives nearby and walked over to watch the motorcade. In the early 60s, she said, John F. Kennedy’s motorcade drove past her childhood home, and that was the last time she saw a presidential/vice presidential motorcade. She said it’s an uplifting feeling. pic.twitter.com/p5reTGZTus

— Megan Guza (@meganguzaTrib) June 21, 2021

She made sure to get her picture taken posing on the corner with her flag before she walked home.

“This is good for everybody,” she said. “It’s uplifting – something this country has needed for a few years.”

VP Kamala Harris greets campers at day camp at Brookline Rec Center prior to round table on child tax credit. pic.twitter.com/nmK8REEe2m

— Debra Erdley (@deberdley_trib) June 21, 2021

Visiting campers

Harris met with a group of day campers at the Brookline Recreation Center. She then discussed the child tax credit during a press conference.

At the Brookline Recreation Center, @VP Kamala Harris stops to promote the #ChildTaxCredit this afternoon in Pittsburgh @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/6wHrXEC2FI

— Shane Dunlap (@shanedunlap) June 21, 2021

President Biden released a statement regarding the child tax credit during Harris’ visit to Pittsburgh. The American Rescue Plan increased the child tax credit to $3,600 for qualifying families whose children are under 6 years old and to $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17, the president noted. The money will be paid through monthly checks or by direct deposit, with the IRS scheduled to start sending out payments on July 15.

“This tax cut will give our nation’s hardworking families with children a little more breathing room when it comes to putting food on the table, paying the bills, and making ends meet,” the statement read, in part. “Nearly every working family with children is going to feel this tax cut make a difference in their lives, and we need to spread the word so that all eligible families get the full credit.”

At 2:30 p.m., Harris and Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh will hold a roundtable on labor issues at IBEW. Their appearance is part of the continued push for support for Biden’s infrastructure plan.

Local leadership, Rep. Conor Lamb, AG Josh Shapiro, County Exec. Rich Fitzgerald, Mayor Bill Peduto and Sen. Bob Casey await the arrive of @VP Harris @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/NDkF9NRbro

— Shane Dunlap (@shanedunlap) June 21, 2021

On March 31, Biden visited suburban Pittsburgh to unveil a $2.3 trillion plan intended to revive the economy through new infrastructure and transportation-related projects around the country. Republicans have decried the price tag as too costly, and the effort has stalled in Congress for months.

VP Kamala Harris and Labor Secretary Marty Walsh have a private chat with Wynnewood Landis, Amanda Parks and Rachel Davis, a trio of Google contractors who formed a union in Pittsburgh. They were the first group of white collar tech works in the country to form a union. pic.twitter.com/zAvbkBCiP9

— Debra Erdley (@deberdley_trib) June 21, 2021

A scaled-down $579 billion bipartisan alternative for infrastructure projects is on the table for Biden to consider, Bloomberg reported Sunday.

Two blocks of East Carson Street in Pittsburgh’s South Side were closed Monday afternoon during Harris’ visit to the union hall.

Crowd starting to gather outside Hot Metal Flats, awaiting @VP pic.twitter.com/I5A2lbKp2j

— Colleen Hammond (@colleenchamm) June 21, 2021

@VP Kamala Harris arriving in Brookline, headed to Brookline Memorial Recreation Center. pic.twitter.com/iyITFAwh1D

— Megan Guza (@meganguzaTrib) June 21, 2021

GOP releases statement

The Republican National Committee on Monday described the visit as “grandstanding in Pittsburgh.”

RNC Director of Regional Communications Chris Walker plans to discuss “Harris’ avoidance of the Biden Border Crisis” at 3:30 p.m. with former U.S. Rep. Keith Rothfus, R-Sewickley, and Republican Party of Pennsylvania Vice Chair Bernie Comfort.