A roaring crowd of battleground state voters greeted Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday as she opened her public case against Republican former President Donald Trump by declaring November's election will be "a choice between freedom and chaos".
"In this campaign, I promise you, I will proudly put my record against his any day of the week,” Harris said. “We believe in a future where every person has the opportunity not just to get by, but to get ahead."
Harris arrived in the Milwaukee area having locked up nomination support from Democratic delegates after President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid on Sunday. It was her first campaign rally since she jumped into the race just two days ago with Biden’s endorsem*nt.
The event reflected a vibrancy that had been lacking among Democrats in recent weeks, and Harris was intent on projecting a sense of steady confidence about the November election. She's pulled in $100 million ($167 million NZD) in donations since Sunday afternoon and on Tuesday picked up the backing of more Democratic officials and political groups, including congressional leaders Charles Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries.
By stopping in Wisconsin, Harris was putting down a marker in one of the "blue wall" states along with Michigan and Pennsylvania that Democrats see as essential for securing a presidential victory.
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The visit comes a week after the Republican National Convention wrapped up in the city and as Harris works to sharpen her message against the GOP nominee with just over 100 days until Election Day.
Harris' trip to the state was a sharp contrast to Biden's July 6 visit, when he was trying to reassure Democrats who were wary after his troubling performance in the June 27 debate against Trump. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who is up for reelection this year, had skipped the Biden event, but she spoke before Harris on Tuesday.
Harris is leaning into her resume as a former district attorney and California attorney general, seeking to draw a contrast with Trump who is the first former president to be convicted of felony crimes.
"She’s prepared to meet this moment because she was professionally trained to prosecute a criminal, and unfortunately that’s who the Republicans have put forward," said Senator Laphonza Butler, D-Calif.
Harris strode onto the stage Tuesday to the anthem Freedom from Beyonce’s Lemonade album and set about contrasting herself with Trump.
"I took on perpetrators of all kinds. Predators who abused women. Fraudsters who ripped off consumers. Cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain. So hear me when I say, I know Donald Trump’s type," she said.
Harris cast her campaign as a "people first" endeavour, again aiming to draw a contrast with Trump, who she said represented special interests and corporations.
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She also portrayed her rival’s policies as being antiquated and backward looking. "We are not going back," she said. "And I’ll tell you why we are not going back. Ours is a fight for the future." That echoed Barack Obama who frequently deployed the refrain during his 2012 reelection fight to argue against Republican ideas.
Harris' swift ascent over the past few days has required her to vet possible running mates, a process being led by Eric Holder, who was attorney general during Barack Obama's presidency. But her key impact so far has been galvanising Democrats.
Before the Tuesday speech, Diane Walter, 68, of South Milwaukee said she was thrilled that Harris is the candidate.
"I’ve been a Democrat my whole life," Walter said. "She’s energising the party again."
Tevin Humphrey, 21, came with his mother Myeesha Johnson, 41, and described the vice president as “a great figure to look up to”.
“She’s a better representative of the diversity we’re looking for,” he said.
Trump focus switches to Harris
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Trump and his campaign have quickly turned most of their focus on Harris and have asserted that they were prepared for the change and it did not alter their plans.
The former president has nicknamed the vice president "Lyin’ Kamala Harris", accused her of not being tough enough on crime as a prosecutor and sought to bind her to the administration’s policies on the border as he seeks to make immigration a focus of his campaign.
But there are signs that Trump seems to be unhappy about facing the younger vice president rather than making his case against the aging president. Twice since Biden dropped out, Trump has said the planned second presidential debate should not be hosted by ABC News and suggested it be moved to Fox News, which has a perception of being friendlier to him.
Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, at an appearance in Washington, said he was unimpressed by Trump's attacks, telling reporters Tuesday, “That’s all he’s got?”
In addition to Baldwin, Harris was joined by major elected officials in Wisconsin, including Gov. Tony Evers, Attorney General Josh Kaul, Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski and Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler.
Republican leaders in Wisconsin, for their part, branded Harris as an “extreme liberal” who is out of step with most voters in the swing state.
"Kamala Harris’ favourable are as bad as Joe Biden’s,” said Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman Brian Schimming at a news conference ahead of the Harris event at a high school outside of Milwaukee. “So they are exchanging one bad candidate for another bad candidate in the hope that the people of this state and this country don’t notice where she actually stands on the issues.”
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