Kamala Harris repeatedly attacked Donald Trump at her biggest campaign rally to date, accusing him failing to secure the border and dared him to debate her in September.
Trump and Republicans have repeatedly attacked Harris on the Biden’s border policy, calling her the administration’s ‘border czar.’
But she hit back on Tuesday night.
‘I was the attorney general of a border state. In that job I walked underground tunnels on that border,’ she said. ‘I went after drug cartels, human traffickers … I prosecuted them in case after case and I won. Donald Trump on the other hand talked a big game about securing our border but he’s not walking the talk. Or as my friend Quavo would say, he’s not walking it like he talks it.’
She noted Trump ‘tanked’ the bipartisan deal on border funding ‘because he thought it would help him win the election. Which goes to show Donald Trump doesn’t care about your security, he only cares about himself.’
She vowed to pass the legislation as president.
The border is one of the biggest vulnerabilities for the vice president. Her team has argued she was not in charge of border security but of handling the root causes of migration.
Vice President Kamala Harris repeatedly attacked Donald Trump at her rally
Harris was in Georgia to try and bring the battleground state to her corner.
‘I am very clear. The path to the White House runs right through this state. We did it in 2020 and we’re going to do it again in 2024,’ she said.
She rattled off her resume as a prosecutor, district attorney and attorney general of California.
‘In those roles 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.
‘And I have been dealing with people like him my entire career,’ she added.
‘Lock him up, lock him up,’ the crowd demanded, their feet ponding on the bleachers.
Kamala Harris talks with reporters
And when Harris noted Trump pulled out of their September debate, the crowd booed.
‘So he won’t debate but he and his running mate have a lot to say about me,’ she said. ‘And, by the way, don’t you find some of their stuff to be just plain weird.’
‘Well Donald I hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage because, as the saying goes, if you’ve got something to say’ – the cheering of the crowd drowned her out.a
‘Lock him up,’ the crowd yelled again.
There were 10,000 people cheering on the vice president in the Georgia State Convocation Center, according to the campaign.
The rally was Harris’ largest campaign rally to date. It marks her first appearance in Georgia since she locked up the Democratic presidential nomination.
Trump and Vance will hold a campaign rally in Atlanta together on Saturday August 3, the Trump campaign announced on Tuesday.
It will be held in the same location as Harris’ rally.
Ahead of Harris’ remarks, a bevy of top Democrats in the state fired up the crowd, repeatedly reminding the attendees about Trump’s attempts to overturn the election results in Georgia in the 2020 election.
Megan Thee Stallion fired up the crowd ahead of Harris’ remarks.
‘We’re about to make history with the first female president. The first black female president. Let’s get this done honey,’ she told the cheering crowd.
She sang ‘Girls in the Hood,’ ‘Mamushi,’ ‘Body,’ and ‘Savage’ (massive thanks to CNN’s DJ Judd for helping your pooler with the song IDs).
As she sang her song ‘Body’ she told the crowd: ‘Now I know my ladies in the crowd love their bodies – and if you want to keep loving your body, you know who to vote for.’
Stacey Abrams, who has been one of Harris’ most ardent defenders, received a standing ovation and shouts of ‘Stacey’ when she came out. Abrams, in turn, had the crowd shout ‘Kamala, Kamala.’
She described Harris as someone who ‘break barriers’ in the White House.
She noted that, in Georgia, ‘we do the job of changing America and we’re going to do it again.’
But it was Georgia’s two Democratic senators – who handed the party control of the Senate – that remided the crowd of Trump’s actions in the last presidential race.
Senator Jon Ossoff told the crowd: ‘Apparently Donald Trump is too scared to debate Vice President Karris.’
He added that the candidate who is too scared is the ‘candidate who is losing.’
‘Too scared,’ the crowd yelled. ‘Too scared.’
Ossoff also talked about Trump’s attempts to overturn the election results in Georgia.
‘Lock him up, lock him up,’ the crowd yelled.
And Senator Raphael Warnock emphasized the state’s importance in the race for the White House.
‘Everyone knows the road to the White House goes through Georgia,’ he said.
He noted others know it. ‘As a matter of fact I heard a phone call. A Florida man, called into Georgia and said I need 11,000 votes,’ he said, referring to Trump’s phone call to the state’s secretary of state in 2020.
The crowd roared with laughter and applause.
‘Georgia – Donald Trump tried to steal your vote. Kamala Harris is trying to earn your vote,’ Warnock said.
Failed Governor candidate Stacey Abrams (left) and Senator Jon Ossoff (right) warmed up the crowd for Harris
Vice President Kamala Harris stops at Paschal’s restaurant before her rally
Georgia played a crucial role in the last presidential election, and it is expected to be just as significant this November. According to several polls released last week, it’s a virtual toss-up between Harris and Trump.
Polls showed Joe Biden trailed Trump significantly in the state but Harris does much better against the former president.
She outperforms Biden among young people, Black voters, and Hispanic voters, key demographics that could decide swing states like Georgia and Arizona.
Biden only won the state by some 12,000 votes in 2020, a win heavily contested by Trump, who is currently in the midst of an election interference case in the state
Georgia is a top focus with less than 100 days to go before the election.
The Harris campaign noted it has 24 offices open in the state nd 170 staffers on the ground there.
‘In Georgia, we’re running the largest in state operation of any Democratic presidential campaign cycle ever,’ campaign communications director Michael Tyler said.
While in the state Harris plans to attack Trump for his ties to Project 2025 – an initiative from the Heritage Foundation that promotes conservative polices – and for his position on abortion rights.
And while Harris focuses on Georgia, Trump will be focused on breaking the Democrats’ blue wall.
He’s holding a rally in Pennsylvania on Wednesday – his first visit back to the state since the assassination attempt on him in late June.
Harris had surrogates in Pennsylvania on Monday to counter Trump – the state’s Governor Josh Shapiro and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmore. Both Democrats have been names as possible Harris running mates.
The Harris campaign also has had surrogates Georgia, as she weighs who to pick as her number two.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who is reported to be a potential running mate, was in in the state on Sunday.
The Harris campaign is vetting him along with several other candidates, including Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Govs. Roy Cooper of North Carolina and Tim Walz of Minnesota.
She is expected to choose her vice presidential candidate by Aug. 7.
‘Not yet,’ Harris told reporters on Tuesday when asked if she’s picked her running mate.
Harris’ campaign noted it’s held some 2,300 organizing events in battleground states this weekend as several high-profile Democrats on her potential VP list stumped for her.
With less than 100 days to go until Election Day, the Harris campaign is touting its fundraising and infrastructure, arguing it is well-positioned to beat Trump in November.
The campaign has taken in $200 million since Harris emerged as the likely Democratic presidential nominee last week.
Over 170,000 volunteers have also signed up to help the Harris campaign with phone banking, canvassing and other get-out-the-vote efforts.
