U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, a prominent Western Pennsylvania Democrat in a swing district carried by Donald Trump in 2016, endorsed Joe Biden for president Sunday, deeming him capable of unifying the country and sticking up for the working class.
In an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Mr. Lamb said he made the decision to endorse the former vice president because he’s focused not only on who can beat Mr. Trump in 2020, but also who can get things done and govern while in the White House.
His endorsement is not so much ideological, the freshman congressman from Mt. Lebanon said, as it is on behalf of working-class people in his district who are looking for immediate change.
“You know, they need help now and they can’t afford 10 years of debate over some of these high-flying proposals,” Mr. Lamb said, using language he’s used in the past about the more progressive candidates in the Democratic primary field. “They need someone who can run the ball over the goal line, and I think the vice president can do that.”
According to a Biden campaign official, Mr. Lamb will travel to New Hampshire next weekend to appear as a surrogate for Mr. Biden. No specific details were released.
Also endorsing Mr. Biden on Sunday was U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, a Pennsylvania Democrat who wrote — in a statement released by the campaign — that Mr. Biden believes that “real change will come from pragmatic solutions that help working families.”
With two more Pennsylvania Congress members on board, Mr. Biden has now secured endorsements from five of the nine Democrats in the state’s delegation, as well as the endorsement of its Democratic senator, Bob Casey. Western Pennsylvania’s other Democratic congressman, Mike Doyle, hasn’t yet taken a side in the crowded primary race.
Mike Mikus, a Democratic strategist based in Pittsburgh, said he thinks most elected officials in Pennsylvania view Mr. Biden as the most electable candidate in the race.
But beyond that, Mr. Lamb’s endorsement is a “big get” for the former vice president, Mr. Mikus said, and serves as a generational statement, with Mr. Lamb being a 35-year-old elected official and Mr. Biden, 77, fending off questions about his age.
“I think [the endorsement] helps locally as well, but the people that tend to like Conor Lamb also gravitate toward a Joe Biden,” Mr. Mikus said.
In all three major Pennsylvania general election polls since the former vice president entered the race, Mr. Biden has fared better against Mr. Trump than his Democratic opponents.
Mr. Lamb did not speak with any other primary candidates about an endorsement, a member of his team said.
In 2018, Mr. Biden came to Western Pennsylvania to campaign for Mr. Lamb in his race for the 18th Congressional District — pre-redistricting — against Republican Rick Saccone.
Mr. Lamb said he remembers being impressed by how Mr. Biden greeted local union leaders by name.
“I felt like [his visit] injected a lot of energy into my campaign at a time we really needed it,” Mr. Lamb said. “If I can do that for him on the ground here or anywhere else, I’d be happy to.”
Julian Routh: jrouth@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1952, Twitter@julianrouth
First Published: January 5, 2020, 9:01 p.m.
