Harris to make closing argument to voters at site of Trump's Jan. 6 speech
Oct 29, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris will give a speech in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday in what's being billed as her closing argument to voters. The speech will take place at the Ellipse, the same spot where then-President Donald Trump held his Stop the Steal rally before the riots at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. "We are not at this location by accident," said Jen O'Malley Dillon, campaign manager for the Harris-Walz ticket. "We believe the ellipse is significant, and it's significant for two reasons. One, of course, is the backdrop of the White House. It's really a reminder of the gravity of the job, how much a president can do for good and for bad to shape the country and impact people's lives, but it's also a stark visualization of probably the most infamous example of Donald Trump and how he's used his power for bad,"O'Malley Dillon added that the vice president will take an "optimistic and hopeful" tone that is designed to reach undecided voters. "She's going to focus on talking about what her new generation of leadership really means, and centering that around the American people, what they care about and she's going to make clear that she's committed to ensuring that their needs and priorities are her top priority," she said. RELATED STORY | Voters face important deadline to return mail-in ballotsThe speech, which is expected to be attended by at least 20,000 people, comes at a critical time in the race for president. Polls show Harris and Trump essentially deadlocked, one week before Election Day.While Harris is in D.C., Trump will be in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, holding a rally in Allentown on Tuesday night.His campaign has been busy trying to distance itself from racially-charged comments made at a rally in New York on Sunday. Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe was widely criticized after making a joke about Puerto Rico, calling it a "floating island of garbage."Despite Hinchcliffe being the opening speaker at his rally, Trump told ABC News that he doesn't know the comedian and didn't hear the comments.RELATED STORY | Bad Bunny backs Harris after comedian's racist jokes at Trump event