White House rivals Donald Trump and Kamala Harris kicked off the final week of campaigning on Wednesday, with the Democrat distancing himself from President Joe Biden’s comments labeling Trump supporters “trash.”
Harris traveled to North Carolina and then Pennsylvania, again focusing on two of the seven battleground states that could determine who wins the closest election in modern American history.
Republican Trump will also be in North Carolina on Wednesday – in the city of Rocky Mount, about an hour’s drive from Harris’ Raleigh rally – and then travel to Wisconsin, where he will appear with American sports star Brett Favre.
Trump is expected to reject the election results if he loses, with Republicans already seizing on isolated irregularities caught by election officials to bolster their claims of widespread “fraud.”
On Wednesday, Harris was expected to celebrate after a speech attended by thousands outside the White House, where she warned that her opponent was unstable and eager for unbridled power.
Instead, she was answering questions about Biden’s apparent mistake when the president responded to a warm-up speaker at a Trump rally by calling the island of Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage” in an awkward joke , which risked alienating Latinos. Voter.
As the White House sought to clarify that he was referring to Trump’s rhetoric, not his supporters, Biden said, “The only garbage I see floating around out there is his supporters.”
“Let me be clear, I completely disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for,” Harris, Biden’s vice president, said.
‘unstable, obsessive’
In Washington, Harris delivered a powerful closing argument speech in a symbolic setting.
He spoke at the same location where Trump on January 6, 2021, incited a mob that attacked the US Capitol in a violent attempt to keep him in power, even though he lost the 2020 election to Biden .
“This is someone who is unstable, vindictive, full of grudges and wants unchecked power,” Harris said.
But the vice president also offered an optimistic view of the future of the United States, with the White House glowing behind it.
“Each of you has the power to turn the page and begin writing the next chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told,” Harris told flag-waving supporters.
‘Fraud’ claim
On Wednesday, Trump took to social media to repeat his claims of widespread voter fraud, setting the stage for yet another showdown around the baseless claim that his 2020 loss to Biden was rigged .
He condemned what he said was “fraud on a scale never seen before” in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania, where he made similar comments on Tuesday evening.
At that rally in Pennsylvania, Trump also took credit for reducing public trust in the American news media.
He said, “I’m very proud of this. I have exposed them as being fake. But with your help, a week from today, we are going to defeat Kamala Harris and the media.”
Trump also engaged in damage control on Puerto Rico, saying, “Nobody loves our Latino community and our Puerto Rico community more than me.”
She called Biden’s comments about his supporters “terrible” and referenced them Wednesday in a new plea for campaign donations.
“My Patriots supporters are the best people in the country – I love you!” He said.
One person who will not be voting for Trump on November 5 will be actor and former Republican Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger, who endorsed Harris and her running mate Tim Walz.
Inflation and the health of the US economy have been major issues in this election, and new government data on Wednesday showed solid economic growth despite a slight recession.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)