On Thursday, Kamala Harris criticized Donald Trump for his “extremely insulting” statements about women, stressing that misogyny has no place in America in the 21st century, just days before a controversial election.
With each candidate seeking even the slightest advantage, they moved their race for the White House to Western battleground states, where they focused on immigration and appealed to Latinos five days before voting ended on November 5.
At one of three stops in the West, Trump painted a bleak picture of frenzied migration while addressing supporters in the border state of New Mexico, saying migrants were “unleashing a violent killing spree across America.”
There is no evidence of an immigrant crime wave in the United States.
As the Democratic vice president and Republican former president chase each other across the seven swing states expected to decide the election, Harris is delivering a more upbeat message, with her final stop of the day at a star-studded rally in Las Vegas, where she was introduced by pop singer Jennifer Lopez.
Harris targeted Trump for his comments when he told a crowd on Wednesday that he wanted to “protect” American women “whether women like it or not.”
She described the comments as “offensive to everyone.”
Yes we can
In Las Vegas, she criticized Trump as a man who “simply does not respect women’s freedom or the intelligence of women to be able to make decisions about their own lives.”
“And we know that if elected, he would ban abortion across the country, restrict access to contraception, jeopardize IVF treatments and, for states, listen to this, monitor women’s pregnancies.”
Reproductive rights have been a rallying cry for Democrats — and an Achilles’ heel of sorts for Trump — since the conservative-dominated U.S. Supreme Court ended the federal right to abortion in 2022.
Opinion polls for this year’s election show a wide gender gap, with female voters leaning toward Harris, and Trump getting more support from men, so abortion could play a decisive role in the outcome.
Trump’s three stops were marked by the now-usual torrent of insults, including against Democrats Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Harris.
“You have destroyed our economy,” Trump said, referring to a period in which, contrary to his criticism, there was strong growth in the United States, low unemployment and increased consumer confidence, despite voter concerns about rising prices.
In what was described as an interview with right-wing provocateur Tucker Carlson, Trump took a personal stance once again, calling the vice president a “low-IQ individual…dumb as a rock.”
Carlson, who once texted a colleague that he hated Trump “with a passion,” gave the former president a courteous introduction and said he would proudly vote for him.
“I love Latinos”
Trump is betting that frustrations over the Biden-Harris administration’s immigration policy will tip the border state of Arizona back in his favor after Biden defeated Trump there in 2020.
However, his appearance in New Mexico came as a surprise, given that polls indicate Harris will win the state. However, he appealed to Hispanic voters there.
“I love Hispanics. They’re hard workers,” said Trump, who faced backlash from Puerto Ricans earlier in the week after a racist comment from a speaker during a rally. “They’re warm, sometimes too warm, if you want to know the truth.”
On Thursday night, JLo became the latest person of Puerto Rican descent to criticize Trump for his sarcasm.
“It reminded us of who he really is and how he really feels,” she told a cheering crowd.
“It wasn’t just Puerto Ricans who were offended that day, okay? It was every Latino in this country, it was humanity and anyone of decent character.”
Latinos have traditionally aligned more closely with Democrats, but recent polls show a marked trend toward Republicans.
In Nevada, Trump also confirmed that he had filed a lawsuit against the US television network CBS for $10 billion over an interview Harris gave this month on its main news program, “60 Minutes.”
According to the complaint, Harris gave a confusing answer to a question about the Biden administration’s handling of Israel’s war in Gaza, and CBS edited the answer to cover up the “word jumble.”
Trump — whose rhetorical meanderings have sometimes been covered up by the press in a practice some have called “purge laundering” — called it “election interference fraud.” CBS denied the accusation.
The latest New York Times/Siena poll showed Harris with 52% support among Hispanic voters compared to 42% for Trump.
More cat-and-mouse campaigning takes place on Friday in Wisconsin, where both candidates will hold rallies in Milwaukee.
About 63.5 million Americans cast early votes, more than 40% of the total votes for 2020.