‘Turned black’: Trump shocks on stage with Kamala Harris comments

Talking to black journalists, Donald Trump has made some startling comments about the ethnic background of rival Kamala Harris.

Donald Trump has said he “didn’t know" presidential rival Kamala Harris was black and that she “turned black” only recently.

The remarks came in front of an audience of black journalists in Chicago, where Mr Trump appeared to question whether she saw herself as being of Indian or black background.

The former president was at a National Association of Black Journalists event responding to a panel of reporters from Fox News, ABC News US and news website Semafor.

Things didn't start well when he was asked by the ABC’s Rachel Scott why black voters should consider opting for him given his history of using race to attack rivals.

Mr Trump was a key proponent of the “birther” conspiracy theory that claimed Barack Obama was born in Kenya which would have disqualified him from being US President as only those born in American can stand.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been asked a question… in such a horrible manner,” Mr Trump said, complaining that the event also began late.

“You don’t even say hello. Who are you? Are you with ABC? Because I think they’re a fake news network.”

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks with Rachel Scott, senior congressional correspondent for ABC News during a question-and-answer session at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Chicago. (Photo by SCOTT OLSON / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

‘Didn’t know she was black’

When Scott pushed him for an answer he replied: “I have answered the question. I have been the best president for the black population since Abraham Lincoln”.

His team added that this was due to his “America First” policies on the “economy, immigration, energy, law and order, and foreign policy”.

Mr Trump was then asked if he agreed with comments from some Republicans that Ms Harris, who is Vice President and was formerly a Senator and before that California’s Attorney-General, was a “DEI hire”.

DEI stands for diversity, equity and inclusion and its aim is to ensure well qualified people from minorities aren't overlooked, particularly in the workplace. But critics have claimed it means under qualified people are promoted not because of their skills but due to their background.

Mr Trump answered by questioning his rival’s identity.

“I’ve known her a long time indirectly — not directly very much — and she was always of Indian heritage and she was only promoting Indian heritage,” he told the panel.

“I didn’t know she was black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn black, and now she wants to be known as black.

“So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she black?”

‘Indian all the way, then suddenly black’

American-born Ms Harris’ heritage is both. She was born in California to Shyamala Gopalan Harris, an Indian researcher who moved to the US, and Donald J Harris, a university professor who hailed from Jamaica.

The ABC’s Scott said to Mr Trump that Ms Harris had “always identified as a black woman,” and that she went to a “historically black college”.

“I respect either one,” Mr Trump said of her being Indian and black.

“But she obviously doesn’t, because she was Indian all the way, and then all of a sudden she made a turn and she went — she became a black person,” he said.

“I think somebody should look into that, too.”

When asked again if he thought Ms Harris was a “DEI hire,” Mr Trump said, “I really don’t know, could be”.

Kamala Harris with her mother Shyamala Gopalan in an undated photo.

‘Repulsive, insulting’

The New York Post spoke to some attendees after Mr Trump left who said they found his comments about Ms Harris’ ethnicity “absolutely disgusting”.

Senator Raphael Warnock, a prominent Democrat, said Mr Trump’s comments were “not surprising”.

“This is who Donald Trump is. This is the politics of insult, of revenge and resentment and retribution.”

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also hit out at Mr Trump.

“As a person of colour – as a black woman who is in this position that is standing before you at this podium, behind this lectern – what he just said is repulsive, it’s insulting”.

On social media, Mr Trump said the panel had been a success.

“The questions were rude and nasty, often in the form of a statement, but we CRUSHED IT!” he wrote.

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is an American of mixed Indians and Jamaican background. (Photo by Stephanie Scarbrough / POOL / AFP)

Election dynamics shift

Mr Trump has been on a mission to widen his voter base.

He has a hard core of voters who could be vital to him in some swing states.

But in other states up for grabs, for instance Georgia, the difference between Mr Trump winning them could be if he can peel of some black voters to his side.

And the race is far tighter than it was with Kamala Harris now his likely opponent after Joe Biden dropped out.

New polling across seven of America’s key swing states shows Mr Trump’s lead has been almost completely “wiped out” since Mr Biden’s departure, changing the presidential race from a potential landslide in his favour to a toss-up.

Donald Trump is facing a far tighter race. (Photo by SCOTT OLSON / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Three new national polls were released on Tuesday. Two of them give a narrow lead to Ms Harris, the other a slightly chunkier advantage to the former president.

A more significant poll looked at swing states as well as the national figure. Conducted by Bloomberg News/Morning Consult, it is based off a large sample of 11,538 voters, across seven key states.

The top-line, national figure has Ms Harris leading Mr Trump with 47 per cent of the vote to his 46. But the state-by-state figures matter more.

They show Ms Harris leading in Michigan (53-42), Wisconsin (49-47), Arizona (49-47) and Nevada (47-45).

She is tied with Mr Trump in Georgia (47-47). And the Republican nominee leads in North Carolina (48-46) and Pennsylvania (50-46).

The Democrats’ vote share has increased in all seven of those states.

“Kamala Harris wipes out Trump’s swing state lead,” Bloomberg reporter Jon Levi said, noting the data showed Ms Harris “riding a wave of enthusiasm among young, black and Hispanic voters”.

Project these poll results onto the electoral map and you get a razor thin margin, with Ms Harris on 268 electoral votes and Mr Trump on 254. Georgia, as the one tied state, would determine the winner.

– with Samuel Clench.

Originally published as ‘Turned black’: Trump shocks on stage with Kamala Harris comments