Harris rallying in Wisconsin same night as DNC because she’s still the ‘underdog’: Campaign official
(MILWAUKEE) — Vice President Kamala Harris is holding a rally Tuesday night in Milwaukee — in the middle of the Democratic National Convention — at the same arena where former President Donald Trump accepted the Republican nomination just a month ago.
A Harris campaign official said they aren’t just doing a “victory lap” because of the momentum around the vice president — instead they’re choosing to hold a rally during the DNC because they still believe they are the “underdogs” and need to work hard to win over voters in battleground states such as Wisconsin, according to the official.
These critical voters won’t be in Chicago, and Harris needs to “meet them where they are,” the official said.
Milwaukee is “a place where we need to increase turnout and it’s a good high-momentum, high-energy moment to dig in and talk to folks,” the official added. “We want to make this bigger than Chicago.”
Harris’ Tuesday rally will take place in the Fiserv Forum — the location of the Republican National Convention’s prime-time events and where Trump recently accepted his party’s nomination to a packed house.
“If she can fill up that arena that can hold some 18,000 people — that could get under Trump’s skin,” the campaign official said — a reference to Trump’s focus on crowd size.
In recent weeks, Trump has continued to make baseless claims that the Harris campaign pays for her crowd as his Democratic rival gains momentum with large-scale rallies.
Earlier this month, Trump falsely accused Harris’ campaign of using artificial intelligence to fabricate crowds at a campaign rally in Michigan. A Harris campaign official told ABC News that the photo Trump called into question was taken by a Harris campaign staffer and that it was “not modified by AI in any way.”
Harris’ visit to Wisconsin comes after she spoke at the DNC briefly on Monday night. She is set to speak again at the convention on Thursday night where she will accept the party’s nomination. Her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff is set to speak at the convention Tuesday night ahead of keynote speakers former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama.
Democratic voters in the area said Harris needs to frequently visit Wisconsin to win the crucial battleground state. In 2020, President Joe Biden beat Trump by a narrow margin; in 2016, Trump won the state by an extremely narrow margin of about 22,700 votes over Hillary Clinton — less than 1%.
Democratic voters noted that Harris is already doing more than Clinton in 2016, when the former secretary of state did not visit Wisconsin during the general election.
“The last time I felt this much excitement was when Obama ran,” said Wisconsin resident Shannon Mattner, who is planning to attend Harris’ rally. “We just feel like there’s more hope now.”
Daniel Barfouth, a union member from Wisconsin set to attend the rally, says he supports Harris because of her position on unions.
“I like what she has to say about unions. I like how the unions endorsed her,” Barfouth said.
Barfourth drew a sharp contrast between Harris and Trump: “He talks about chaos. He doesn’t talk about hope, connection or anything about love. He talks about tearing everything down.”
Asked what Harris needs to do to win Wisconsin, Barfourth said that Harris needs to continue “putting herself out there as a normal person like everyone else: ‘I’m one of you’. Trump isn’t one of us. He was born with a silver spoon with his mouth. He hasn’t had to suffer for anything.”
(NEW YORK) — The FBI and Postal Service are investigating suspicious mail containing a white powder substance that was sent to election offices in at least 16 states this week, according to an ABC News canvass of the country.
None of the mail has been deemed hazardous so far — and in one case, the substance was determined to be flour — but the scare prompted evacuations in some locations.
Election offices in New York, Tennessee, Wyoming, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Indiana, Massachusetts, and Colorado received the suspicious packages. Similar suspicious mail was addressed to offices in additional states — Arizona, Georgia, Connecticut and Maryland among them — but investigators intercepted them before they reached their destination.
The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service said in a statement Tuesday that they were investigating letters containing white powdery substances. A law enforcement source said at this point none of the packages were believed to be hazardous.
“We are also working with our partners to determine how many letters were sent, the individual or individuals responsible for the letters, and the motive behind the letters,” the statement read.
At least some of the packages were signed by the “United States Traitor Elimination Army,” according to a copy of a letter sent to members of the Elections Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center obtained by ABC News.
Election offices office in Kansas and Wyoming were evacuated on Monday, officials said, and the ventilation system in the Missouri secretary of state’s office in Jefferson City was briefly shut off as a precaution. The North Carolina Board of Elections did not receive any packages with white powder, but an official there told ABC News they are putting in place new safety precautions in light of the incidents in other states.
This latest incident marks the second time in the past year that suspicious mailings containing a white powdery substance were sent to election offices. Last November, similar envelopes were sent to elections offices in five states — four of which tested positive for fentanyl, the FBI said at the time.
In the intervening months, several offices have taken steps to train staff on how to handle poisonous material sent in the mail. In Milwaukee, for example, election workers recently received training on how to administer Narcan.
The National Association of Secretaries of State released a statement urging an end to the “threatening and intimidating actions towards election officials” during recent election cycles.
“This must stop, period,” the statement read. “Our democracy has no place for political violence, threats or intimidation of any kind.”
(MINNEAPOLIS) — Ever since Vice President Kamala Harris announced Tim Walz as her running mate, the buzz around Minnesota’s governor has been about his political image as a folksy “Midwestern Dad.”
But what about his “running mate?”
Gwen Walz currently serves as Minnesota’s 39th first lady and could become second lady of the United States if the Democratic ticket succeeds in securing the White House this November.
As an educator, activist, and someone who describes herself as one of her husband’s closest advisers during his time as a congressman and governor, she already has a reputation as someone familiar with politics and the spotlight.
Background, passions and career
Born in Glencoe, Minnesota, Walz, 58, and her three sisters, were raised by parents Val and Linn who worked as teachers and small business owners.
After attending Gustavus Adolphus College and Minnesota State University, she followed in her family’s footsteps and became a teacher as well, focusing on English.
In addition to teaching in public, alternative and migrant schools, she also served as an administrator and coordinator for Mankato Area Public Schools for more than two decades.
In an episode of the “What If It Works” podcast released last month, she was interviewed by her former student, Ann Vote, who grew up to become a teacher herself.
Vote called Walz’s high school American Literature class her “most memorable.”
Said to be passionate about improving equity in education, Walz has also taught in prisons and expanded education among incarcerated populations.
She is an avid supporter of the Bard Prison Initiative, a program dedicated to providing college-level educational opportunities in prisons. With the help of other congressional spouses, she expanded the initiative to more than 11 states.
That included educational opportunities from prestigious institutions such as Notre Dame and Washington University, she said on the “What If It Works” podcast.
During the episode, she also discussed her work with the Eastern Correctional Facility where she helped establish a debate team that beat Harvard University’s team.
“The arguments were so unique and different than what was heard on the college debate circuit,” she said.
LGBTQ+ rights are of high importance to her as well, she’s said, and students recall her and her husband being strong allies back in the 1990s.
Jacob Reitan, a student at Mankato West High School in 1999, said he told Walz he was gay before he told his parents, and her ability to openly discuss gay issues during the 90s “meant the world to [him].”
The couple turned to politics due to dissatisfaction with the Iraq War and they sought to enact change, she said during the podcast interview.
Since becoming first lady of Minnesota in 2018, she set herself apart by becoming more heavily involved compared to other political spouses.
In fact, she is the very first first lady in Minnesota to establish her own office in the state Capitol, according to the Star Tribune.
“[Tim and I] do work really closely together, and there are issues where I do a lot of the work and share my thoughts,” she said on the podcast. “We are still one another’s closest advisers.”
She added that she also works closely with her husband’s chief of staff.
She has even proven capable of replacing her husband when the need arose.
The New York Times reported on a 2006 fundraising dinner for Tim Walz’s first congressional campaign, during which he suffered from laryngitis. A seasoned public speaker, the report said, she stepped in and delivered an eloquent speech on his behalf.
Met teaching at same high school
Known as Gwen Whipple at the time, she met Tim Walz while teaching at the same Nebraska high school.
They even shared a classroom at one point.
After their first date of dinner and a movie, Tim Walz apparently leaned in for a kiss which she declined. He replied, “That’s fine, but you should know I’m going to marry you,” the Star Tribune reported.
The couple wed in 1994.
“The first project we ever did together was Earth Day,” she recalled on the “What If It Works” podcast. “We thought, gosh, we really have complementary things about our styles that work well together.”
The Walzes were quick to combine their teaching talents, establishing an annual summer trip to China for their students.
They even spent their honeymoon on one of these trips, and the Star Tribune said that they sacrificed sharing a room to accommodate their odd number of students.
The two later relocated to her home state of Minnesota, where they expanded their teaching duties at Mankato West High School.
Per the Star Tribune, their relationship resembles a movie plot: He taught social studies; she taught English. He coached the football team; she coached the cheerleading team.
The Walzes have been married for 30 years and have two children, 23-year-old Hope and 17-year-old Gus.
Their children represent how their policy beliefs are quite personal to them, they say, particularly with regard to reproductive rights.
“When my wife and I decided to have children, we spent years going through infertility treatments, and I remember praying every night for a call for good news, the pit in my stomach when the phone rang, and the agony when we heard that the treatments hadn’t worked,” her husband, 60, reflected during his debut campaign event in Philadelphia earlier this month.
“So, it wasn’t by chance that when we welcomed our daughter into the world, we named her Hope,” he said.
On the campaign trail
He continues to proudly introduce his wife as he steps into his new role in the national spotlight.
“I can’t wait for all of you and America to get to know my incredible wife, Gwen, a 29-year public school educator,” her husband said during the Philadelphia rally.
Recognizing the daunting position she has been thrust into, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, Harris’ husband, extended his support with a phone call following the official announcement of her husband as the vice presidential pick.
“I remember getting this call four years ago, and I actually know what you’re going through right now,” Emhoff reassured her. “But the good news is, I’ve already been through it.”
“I’m going to be there for you,” he added. “And we’re going to do this together.”
The Harris-Walz ticket and their spouses head back to Pennsylvania for a campaign bus tour on Sunday, just prior to the Democratic National Convention starting Monday.
“This is the first time all four principals have campaigned together, following the rally in Philadelphia earlier this month,” the campaign announced in a press release.
This campaign event will take on a more intimate feel as the candidates and their spouses plan to speak to voters individually in community settings, officials said.
Walz has also begun spearheading campaign events of her own, including a Utah Women for Kamala kickoff call on Thursday.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, she said she was “especially outraged” about former President Donald Trump’s platform, specifically in regards to public school funding and his stance on reproductive rights.
The report said the call raised over $50,000 for the Harris-Walz campaign.
ABC News’ Gabriella Abdul-Hakim contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — With less than a week until the Sept. 10 presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump hosted by ABC News, the network on Wednesday released the set of rules that will govern the matchup.
The debate, which will be moderated by World News Tonight anchor and managing editor David Muir and ABC News Live “Prime” anchor Linsey Davis, will mark the first in-person debate between Harris and Trump and will feature 90 minutes of debate time, with two commercial breaks.
The debate will be held in Philadelphia at the National Constitution Center and will have no audience in the room.
Microphones will be live only for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the time belongs to another candidate. Only the moderators will be permitted to ask questions.
A coin flip was held virtually on Tuesday to determine the podium placement and the order of closing statements; former President Trump won the coin toss and chose to select the order of statements. The former president will offer the last closing statement, and Vice President Harris selected the right podium position on screen, i.e., stage left.
There will be no opening statements, and closing statements will be two minutes per candidate.
Each candidate will be allotted two minutes to answer each question with a two-minute rebuttal, and an additional minute for a follow-up, clarification, or response.
Candidates will stand behind podiums for the duration of the debate and no props or pre-written notes will be allowed on stage. Each candidate will be given a pen, a pad of paper, and a bottle of water.
Campaign staff may not interact with candidates during commercial breaks.
The debate will be produced in conjunction with ABC station WPVI-TV and will air live at 9 p.m. ET on the network and on the ABC News Live 24/7 streaming network, Disney+ and Hulu.
ABC News will also air a pre-debate special, “Race for the White House,” at 8 p.m. ET, anchored by chief global affairs correspondent and This Week co-anchor Martha Raddatz, chief Washington correspondent and This Week co-anchor Jonathan Karl, chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce and senior congressional correspondent Rachel Scott.
As previously announced by ABC News, to formally qualify for the debate, the participants had to meet various qualification requirements, including polling thresholds and appearing on enough state ballots to theoretically be able to get a majority of electoral votes in the presidential election.