AUSTIN (KXAN) — President Biden will be in Austin on Monday to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act.
The event, originally scheduled for July 15 at the LBJ Presidential Library, was postponed following the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump.
“We’re honored to have President Biden at the LBJ Library to mark the 60th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, a law that was a giant step toward fulfilling our nation’s most sacred promise of ‘all men are created equal’” said Mark K. Updegrove, President & CEO of the LBJ Foundation and a presidential historian. “Last year, President Biden said civil rights are ‘the unfinished fight of America.’ We look forward to commemorating this milestone with the President and hearing his vision for how we can continue to make real the promise of America for all of its citizens.”
Biden will be the keynote speaker Monday afternoon to honor the milestone.
Since July 14, when Biden’s initial planned trip to Austin was postponed, the president has announced he will not seek reelection, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee, and contracted COVID-19.
On July 24, Biden explained his decision to step aside in the presidential race, saying the “best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation.”
Biden’s physician said on Tuesday that his COVID-19 symptoms have since resolved and his antigen testing is now negative.
The original date for his Austin visit coincided with the start of the Republican National Convention and was set to precede two other stops, both in Las Vegas, in the following days, according to The Hill. The Vegas trip still went on as planned, where Biden attended and spoke at the 115th NAACP National Convention on July 16 and attended the July 17 UnidosUS annual conference, described as one of the largest gatherings of Latinos in the country.
Monday’s event at the LBJ Presidential Library event is scheduled for 3 p.m. The event is not open to the public.
You can watch a live stream of the event and Biden’s address in the video player above through KXAN Live or the LBJ Library’s livestream.
Follow along in the live blog below as KXAN chronicles the president’s appearance in Austin.
Live blog
Award-winning actor and director Bryan Cranston, who portrayed LBJ in the movie “All the Way” and on Broadway, recited portions of LBJ’s address to the nation after he signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964.
3:44 p.m.
Three-time Grammy nominee and Texan Ruthie Foster along with the Huston-Tillotson University concert choir performed at the LBJ Presidential Library Civil Rights anniversary event.
Foster is one of several performers and speakers slated for the event.
3:30 p.m.
Outside the LBJ Presidential Library, guests gathered to enter the event around 1 p.m. Guests were split into two security lines. It took about 20 to 25 minutes to get through security, which were staffed by Secret Service members.
3:13 p.m.
President Biden’s motorcade has left AUS for the LBJ Presidential Library. Biden will be the keynote speaker at the library’s event to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act.
3 p.m.
Several local and state leaders are on the tarmac to greet Biden in Austin. U.S. Rep. Greg Casar (D-Austin), U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin), U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-Houston), Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and Travis County Judge Andy Brown were seen waiting outside of Air Force One.
2:49 p.m.
Air Force One has landed at AUS.
2:35 p.m.
KXAN reporter Grace Reader shared video of Interstate 35 blocked off near Riverside Drive as law enforcement prepare for Biden’s motorcade to drive toward downtown Austin.
Click here for more information on the potential traffic impacts with Biden’s visit.
1:33 p.m.
KXAN Photojournalist Frank Martinez captured several photos Monday of law enforcement gathering near Austin-Bergstrom International Airport ahead of Biden’s visit.
1:20 p.m.
Biden and a “large contingent of lawmakers and civil rights leaders” have boarded Air Force One to travel to Austin, the White House Press Office reports.
Lawmakers included U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Delaware), U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) and U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Georgia). Rev. Al Sharpton was also seen boarding Air Force One.
12:20 p.m.
While in Austin, The Hill reports Biden is expected to propose term limits for Supreme Court justices, according to a White House official.
Biden is expected to propose 18-year term limits for the nine justices.
“The United States is the only major constitutional democracy that gives lifetime seats to its high court Justices. Term limits would help ensure that the Court’s membership changes with some regularity; make timing for Court nominations more predictable and less arbitrary; and reduce the chance that any single Presidency imposes undue influence for generations to come,” reads a White House fact sheet on the proposal.
12:04 p.m.
The White House Press Office reports Biden has boarded Marine 1 and the aircraft was “wheels up” at 11:48 a.m. CT en route to Austin.
11:30 a.m.
U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin) is expected to be on the tarmac at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport for President Biden’s arrival in Austin, his media team told KXAN.
Doggett was the first Democratic congressman to publicly call for Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. Doggett released a statement on July 2 saying: “While much of his (Biden’s) work has been transformational, he pledged to be transitional. He has the opportunity to encourage a new generation of leaders from whom a nominee can be chosen to unite our country through an open, democratic process.”
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