WEST ALLIS, Wis. (AP) — As cheers rang out from voters in battleground states, Vice President Kamala Harris She launched her Democratic political case against former Republican President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
The November election “is a choice between freedom and chaos,” she said.
“In this race, I proudly bet my record on his,” Harris said. “We believe in a future where everyone has the opportunity to not just survive, but thrive.”
Harris arrived in the Milwaukee area with the nomination's endorsement secured. Democratic Party Representative It was her first campaign rally since launching her campaign just two days ago after President Joe Biden gave up his reelection bid on Sunday. Biden's support.
The event reflected a vibrancy that has been missing from Democrats in recent weeks and, along with the $100 million in donations since Sunday afternoon, is evidence that Ms. Harris is trying to project a steady confidence in the November election. The vice president has also garnered endorsements from Democratic officials and political groups, including Sens. Charles Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries.
Harris' stop in Wisconsin will take her to one of the “blue wall” states, along with Michigan and Pennsylvania, that Democrats see as crucial to securing victory in the presidential election.
The visit took place a week later. Republican National Convention With just over 100 days until Election Day, Harris has been holding rallies across the city trying to hammer home her message to Republican candidates.
Harris' visit to the state contrasted with Biden's July 6 visit, in which he sought to reassure Democrats who were wary of her continuing in the race after her poor performance in a June 27 debate with Donald Trump. Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin is running for reelection this year. Baldwin did not attend Biden's event but spoke before Harris on Tuesday.
Harris has touted her record as a former district attorney and attorney general of California, drawing a contrast with Trump, the first former president to be convicted of a felony. She has said at rallies that as a prosecutor she dealt with con men and charlatans and knows what kind of person Trump is.
“She is professionally trained to prosecute criminals and is ready for this moment, and unfortunately, that's exactly who the Republicans have put up,” said Sen. LaFonza Butler, D-Calif.
Associated Press reporter Julie Walker reports that Democrats plan to hold a virtual roll call before their convention, with Kamala Harris being endorsed.
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Ms. Harris's rapid growth in support in recent days has forced her to select a running mate, a process being led by Eric Holder, who served as attorney general under Barack Obama. But her main impact so far has been in energizing the Democratic Party.
Before Tuesday's speech, South Milwaukee resident Diane Walter, 68, said she was thrilled that Harris was the nominee.
“I've been a Democrat my whole life,” Walter said. “She's reinvigorating the party.”
Tevin Humphrey, 21, attended the event with his mother, Misha Johnson, 41, and described the vice president as a “great man to look up to.”
“She better represents the diversity we're looking for,” he said.
By Monday night, Harris He ran for president in 2020She has far surpassed the 1,976 delegates needed to win in the first round, according to an Associated Press delegate tally. No other candidates were mentioned by delegates contacted by The Associated Press.
Still, the AP is not calling Harris the new presumptive nominee because convention delegates will be free to vote for the candidate of their choice at the August convention or if Democrats proceed with the election. Virtual roll call Ahead of the rally in Chicago.
AP tally It is based on interviews with individual delegates, public statements from many state parties announcing their delegation's endorsement of Harris, and public statements and endorsements from individual delegates.
Trump and his campaign quickly shifted their focus to Harris, arguing they had been preparing for the change and had not changed their plans.
The former president called the vice president “lying Kamala Harris,” criticized her for not being tough enough on crime as a prosecutor and tried to pin her down on his administration's border policy as he seeks to make immigration a campaign focus.
But Trump seems more frustrated at being faced with a younger vice president than he is with an older president. Since Biden withdrew, Trump has twice said that ABC News should not host the second scheduled presidential debate, suggesting that it be switched to Fox News, which he sees as more friendly to him.
Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, said he was unfazed by Trump's attacks, telling reporters Tuesday, “Is that all he can do?”
Harris was scheduled to be accompanied by some of the state's key elected officials, including Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, Senator Tammy Baldwin, Lt. Governor Sara Rodriguez, Attorney General Josh Kaul, Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski, Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Ben Wikler, and the state's labor union leaders.
Wisconsin Republican leaders, meanwhile, have portrayed Harris as a “radical liberal” who they say is out of step with most voters in the battleground state.
“The support for Kamala Harris is just as bad as Joe Biden's,” Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman Brian Simming said at a press conference ahead of an event for Harris at a suburban Milwaukee high school. “So they're trying to trade one bad candidate for another bad candidate so that people in this state and this country don't realize where she actually stands on the issues.”
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Associated Press writers Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, and Michelle Price in New York contributed.
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