Milwaukee leaders 'excited' for Biden's 1st official trip outside DC

Milwaukee leaders ‘excited’ for Biden’s 1st official trip outside DC

President Joe Biden's first official trip outside the Washington, D.C. area will bring him to Milwaukee Tuesday, Feb. 16, and the presidential visit means some traffic changes.

MILWAUKEE - President Joe Biden's first official trip outside the Washington, D.C. area will bring him to Milwaukee Tuesday, Feb. 16, and the presidential visit means some traffic changes.

"We’re very excited to open our arms to the new president of the United States and welcome him on his first visit outside of Washington," said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

President Biden will speak from the Pabst Theater in freezing Milwaukee to the world, and on the eve of the visit, the world was already in the Brew City, with a fleet of television trucks and camera cables snaked out on the frozen sidewalk, ready for the live broadcast of the presidential town hall.

CNN officials said they and not the White House have full control over which questioners are chosen. FOX6 met a few Milwaukee people who helped CNN recruit those possible people.

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"I was pretty honored and pretty astounded -- really shocked," said Melanie Gray, Milwaukee chapter of the National Black Nurses Association. "I was really glad I was able to push out the invitation and get, I hope, a lot of quality questions to be presented to the president."

Young Democrats of Wisconsin's Solana Patterson-Ramos showed FOX6 the form CNN asked her to share.

"What I'm happy about is having a highlight on Milwaukee," said Patterson-Ramos. "I know the DNC would have done it, but I’m glad that the president came here and is going to put a highlight on the great things that Milwaukee has."

There will also be protestors on hand, including progressive groups pushing for things like the $15 minimum wage.

"It’s definitely going to be cold, but it will be 20 degrees warmer tomorrow than today, so that’s a bonus," said Ryan Hamann, Wisconsin Freedom Road Socialist Organization. "We want to be out there to let him know that we have demands, and he needs to do what he said he was going to do and he needs to do more than he said he was going to do."

Be prepared for some traffic problems, with Wells Street in front of the Pabst Theater shut down.

Mayor Barrett said he, Congresswoman Gwen Moore and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley will welcome the president at the airport. White House officials said the town hall is the only planned stop of the day.