Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned at the largest US teachers union on Thursday, July 25, pledging a fight for the future as new polls show she has narrowed the gap with Republican rival Donald Trump in the highly contested states, which will likely decide the outcome of the November elections, reports Reuters.
Harris’ rapid rise as President Joe Biden’s successor in the Nov. 5 presidential race shook up a stagnant race. Now, several polls show that she is managing to reduce former President Trump’s lead.
In a speech in Houston to the American Federation of Teachers, Kamala Harris, 59, focused on economic policy and workers’ rights, laying out plans for affordable health care and child care and criticizing Republicans for blocking gun restrictions in the wake of school shootings.
Our teachers are visionaries. They see and encourage the potential in every child — and in doing so, shape the future of our nation.
To the members of the American Federation of Teachers: Thank you for all you do. It was a joy to be with you today. pic.twitter.com/7n5mfbYQb0
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) July 25, 2024
Kamala Harris denounced the “retrograde” agenda of Donald Trump “and his extremist allies” in front of Texas teachers on Thursday. “Donald Trump and his extremist allies want to return our nation to failed economic policies,” said the Democratic candidate at the meeting of the American Federation of Teachers in Houston.
“Our fight is a fight for the future,” Harris told a crowd of about 3,500. “We are in a fight for our fundamental freedoms. And to the leaders in this room, I say: Let’s go,” urged Harris.
Happening Now: I am back in Houston, Texas to deliver the keynote speech at the American Federation of Teachers’ 88th national convention. https://t.co/hLRvqC9FUB
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) July 25, 2024
A NEW SURVEY SHOWS A TIGHT RACE
A series of polls taken after Biden ended his re-election bid on Sunday, including one by Reuters/Ipsos, show Harris and Trump entering the head-to-head contest on equal footing, setting the stage for a dramatic campaign over the next three and a half months. .
A New York Times/Siena College national poll released Thursday showed Harris narrowing Trump’s sizable lead. Trump leads Harris 48% to 46% among registered voters, up from 49% to 41% in early July, after Biden’s disastrous debate performance led to a wave of Democratic calls for him to -withdraws his candidacy.
While national polls provide important signals about American support for political candidates, a few key states typically tip the balance in the US Electoral College, which ultimately decides who wins a presidential election.
Harris also received good news on that front, as Emerson College/The Hill released a poll showing she has begun to close the gap on Trump in five critical states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin . According to the poll, Trump still leads Harris in every state except Wisconsin, where they are tied.
Together, the polls suggest that while Trump, 78, maintains a narrow lead, he has not seen the surge in support that candidates hope for after last week’s Republican National Convention. extremely well scripted, televised and expensive.
TRUMP CONTINUES ATTACKS, OBAMA PREPARES TO SUPPORT HARRIS
On Wednesday night, July 24, Trump criticized Harris in his first rally since she replaced Biden at the top of the list. He continued his criticism on Thursday, this time online. “We are not ready for a Marxist president and Lyin’ Kamala Harris is a RADICAL LEFT MARXIST, EVEN WORSE!” Trump posted on his social media platform.
Former President Barack Obama has been in regular contact with Harris and plans to endorse her soon as the Democratic presidential nominee, a source familiar with his plans said Thursday.
Former Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, who remains a powerful influence within the Democratic Party, endorsed Harris on Thursday, along with dozens of other women in Congress.
THE FIRST CAMPAIGN VIDEO CLIP, TO THE MUSIC OF BEYONCE
Harris’ campaign released its first online video spot on Thursday. In it, Harris presents this campaign as a fight to protect the individual freedoms of Americans, and the soundtrack is the song “Freedom” by Beyonce.
I’m Kamala Harris, and I’m running for President of the United States. pic.twitter.com/6qAM32btjj
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 25, 2024
The next highly anticipated development will be Harris’ choice of a vice-presidential candidate to go head-to-head with US Senator JD Vance of Ohio, Trump’s choice for vice-president.
The slate of candidates reads like a who’s who of upstart Democrats, including U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, a former astronaut, Govs. Josh Shapiro of
Pennsylvania, Roy Cooper of North Carolina and Andy Beshear of Kentucky, as well as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Harris’ rise has largely pushed Trump out of the headlines, a week after the Republican National Convention and 12 days after he narrowly survived an assassination attempt that injured his ear.
FBI Director Christopher Wray told a House committee Wednesday that investigators are not sure whether Trump’s wound was caused by a bullet or shrapnel. Trump said a bullet hit his ear. A spokesman for the Trump campaign, Jason Miller, called the idea that Trump was not hit by a bullet a “conspiracy,” adding an expletive in response.
In a statement issued Thursday, the FBI said it “was consistent and clear that the shootings were an assassination attempt.” The statement did not specify whether Trump was hit by a bullet or shrapnel.
READY TO DEBATE WITH TRUMP
On the other hand, Kamala Harris declared herself ready to have a face-to-face debate with Donald Trump before the American presidential elections in November. “I’m ready, we’re going to do it,” Kamala Harris told reporters.
The former US president had told reporters on Tuesday in a conference call that he was willing to have more than one debate with Harris.
ABC News had already struck a deal between Trump’s campaign team and that of President Joe Biden to televise a debate scheduled to take place on September 10, but in recent days, Trump has suggested a debate to be held on Fox News Channel. As a result, Fox News proposed that the presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Kamala Harris have a new debate on September 17.
CNN aired a Trump-Biden debate on June 27 that proved disastrous for the Democratic president and ultimately led to his downfall.
Source: ziare.com
