Harris implies Trump a ‘coward’ during Pennsylvania campaign appearance

ROCHESTER, Pennsylvania – US Vice-President Kamala Harris indirectly criticised former president Donald Trump on Aug 18, suggesting her opponent in the Nov 5 election was a “coward” whose politics focused on putting down rivals.

The remarks came in a campaign appearance in the critical battleground state of Pennsylvania with running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, before Ms Harris heads to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, which kicked off on Aug 19.

“Over the last several years, there has been this kind of perversion that has taken place, I think, which is to suggest that the measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you beat down; when what we know is the real and true measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you lift up,” Ms Harris told a crowd of supporters. “Anybody who’s about beating down other people is a coward.”

She did not directly name Trump, who in a campaign appearance

on Aug 17 in eastern Pennsylvania referred to Ms Harris as a “radical” and a “lunatic”.

Opinion polls have shown Ms Harris bringing fresh energy to the campaign and closing the gap with Trump both nationally and in many of the eight highly competitive states including Pennsylvania that will play a decisive role in picking Democratic President Joe Biden’s successor.

Ms Harris, who is black and has Asian heritage, will be the first female US president if she wins in November.

Trump on Aug 17 said he believed she would be easier to beat than Mr Biden, 81, who dropped out in July under pressure from his own party after a disastrous debate against Trump, a Republican.

Pennsylvania was one of three Rust Belt states, along with Wisconsin and Michigan, that helped power Trump’s upset victory in the 2016 election.

Mr Biden, who grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania, flipped the trio back to the Democrats in 2020, and Ms Harris aims to hold on to them.

Sources said on Aug 17 that she was likely to join Mr Biden on stage at the convention on Aug 19 as he passes the torch to her as the party’s nominee for president.

Trump’s campaign will try to counter-programme the convention with a series of swing-state events this week. He will visit a manufacturing facility in York, Pennsylvania, on Aug 19, where his campaign says he will focus on the economy, and a county sheriff’s office in Howell, Michigan, on Aug 20 to talk about safety and crime.

Trump and his running mate, Senator J.D. Vance, will travel to Asheboro, North Carolina, on Aug 21 for remarks on national security, and on Aug 23, Trump will join Turning Point Action, a group founded by conservative activist Charlie Kirk, for a rally in Glendale, Arizona, aimed in part at highlighting efforts to boost turnout.

Trump supporters said they hope he will refocus his campaign on policy rather than the repeated personal attacks against Ms Harris that he has leaned heavily on in the weeks since she emerged as the Democratic candidate.

“Trump can win this election. His policies are good for America and if you have a policy debate, he wins. Donald Trump the provocateur, the showman, may not win this election,” Republican US Senator Lindsey Graham said. “Policy is the key to the White House.” REUTERS