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Kamala Harris and Donald Trump trade barbs in duelling rallies

The two candidates criticized each other as Joe Biden told the nation that he left the race to defend democracy.

Kamala Harris boards Air Force Two in Indianapolis on Wednesday. Picture: AFP
Kamala Harris boards Air Force Two in Indianapolis on Wednesday. Picture: AFP

As US President Joe Biden addressed the nation about his decision to withdraw from the presidential race, Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump escalated their attacks on each other, trading barbs over who represented a greater threat to the nation.

Both Ms Harris and Mr Trump held events on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) looking to make their case to the American people as the latest polls show a close contest – something the Trump campaign dismissed as a brief “honeymoon” for the Vice-President.

Ms Harris criticised Mr Trump for handpicking three Supreme Court judges “because he intended for them to overturn Roe v Wade”.

Mr Trump, in his first rally since Mr Biden dropped out of the race, called Ms Harris “a radical left lunatic who will destroy our country”.

Wednesday’s three-way montage of a lame-duck president, a vice-president thrust to the top of the ticket overnight, and a recently shot former president seeking a comeback captured this remarkable moment in politics and the Democratic Party campaign that is suddenly invigorated by recent shake-ups.

Trump calls Harris a 'lunatic' in first rally since Biden's exit

Mr Biden told the nation from the Oval Office that he left the race to defend democracy and “the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation”.

In his remaining time in office, he said, he would focus on several issues including lowering costs and growing the economy.

Ms Harris, meanwhile, was in Indianapolis, where she called on thousands of members of the Zeta Phi Beta sorority to mobilise voters ahead of the November election, pointing to the group’s history of advocacy on behalf of black women. Zeta Phi Beta is one of the Divine Nine, a group of historically black sororities and fraternities that includes Ms Harris’s sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha.

“In this moment, our nation needs your leadership once again,” she said. “In this moment, I believe we face a choice between two different visions for our nat­ion: one focused on the future, the other focused on the past.” She said she would sign legislation to restore abortion rights.

Ms Harris said that as president, she would invest in affordable childcare, eldercare and paid family leave, while Mr Trump, she argued, would take the country back. The Vice-President pointed to Project 2025, a vision for the next Republican presidency that outlines conservative goals, put forward by some former Trump administration officials.

She called it “a plan to return America to a dark past”.

Mr Trump has repeatedly tried to distance himself from Project 2025, including on Wednesday, when he wrote on social media: “I have nothing to do with, and know nothing about, Project 25.”

Donald Trump on the stump at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Wednesday. Picture: AFP
Donald Trump on the stump at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Wednesday. Picture: AFP

Speaking in Charlotte, North Carolina, later on Wednesday, Mr Trump said he “defeated” Mr Biden, calling him “the worst president in the history of our country … He quit because he was losing so badly in the polls, he was down in every single poll and down by a lot, so he quit.”

He quickly redirected his speech to focus on Ms Harris, lamenting the media’s focus on her and the enthusiasm of the crowds at her rally, while “they never mentioned our crowds”. Mr Trump called her Mr Biden’s “border tzar” and linked her to everything from high inflation to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

He contrasted his views on the economy, abortion and immigration to those of Ms Harris, saying that her “California socialism would kill the American dream”.

Mr Trump said his position on abortion polls better with voters. “That’s because she is so radical,” he said. “She wants abortions in the eighth and ninth month of pregnancy,” he said, a false claim he has repeated in the campaign.

Ms Harris likely will need to pick her vice-presidential running mate by August 7, based on a virtual nomination procedure approved on Wednesday by the Democratic National Convention’s rules committee.

Ms Harris’s remarks on Wednesday were the latest in a series of events she’s held focusing on black voters. Her speech before Zeta Phi Beta was scheduled before Mr Biden’s announcement.

With Mr Trump making inroads with some black voters, according to polls, Ms Harris had been working to shore up support in the black community for the Biden campaign.

Since Mr Biden announced his decision to bow out and Ms Harris became the likely Democratic nominee, black voters have already shown signs of increased enthusiasm. A Sunday night video call with black women leaders had more than 40,000 women join and raised more than $US1.5m, according to the Harris campaign. A separate call on Monday night with black men had nearly 54,000 attendees and raked in nearly $US1.4m for Ms Harris, her campaign said.

“I think we’re going to see a lot of different women who may not have been engaged before trying to find a way to play a role in a campaign that could be history making,” said Adrianne Shropshire, head of BlackPAC. “I don’t think that energy is going to be contained to black women. I think it’s going to be black people.”

The Wall Street Journal

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/the-wall-street-journal/kamala-harris-and-donald-trump-trade-barbs-in-duelling-rallies/news-story/4618fca6fe1506cfdbe7711665479ede