Vice President Kamala Harris said she had spoken to rival Donald Trump to make sure “he’s OK” following the assassination attempt on him on Sunday.
Speaking at a National Association of Black Journalists event this afternoon, Harris said she told President Trump, “As I have said publicly, there is no place for political violence in our country.”
“I’m in this election, in this race, for many reasons, including fighting for democracy, which has no place for political violence. We can and should have healthy debate, discussion and differences of opinion, but we should not resort to violence to resolve those issues.”
In an interview with Fox Digital, Trump blamed the assassination attempt on “comments” from Harris and President Joe Biden, which included a warning that Trump would be a “threat to democracy.”
But Trump has consistently used extreme rhetoric when speaking about Biden and Harris, claiming the vice president is a “Marxist” and her policies are “fascist.” In the same Fox interview, Trump said Biden and Harris are “people who want to destroy our country” and are “enemies from within.”
Biden also called Trump, who he said “couldn’t have been more gracious,” according to CNN.
Harris’ appearance at the NABJ comes after she skipped the party’s convention in July. Trump attended the event and asked if Harris “just happened to be black,” suggesting she had changed her political identity for political advantage. But a Reuters fact check found that’s not true.
Harris dismissed Trump’s comments as “the same old platitudes.” Trump’s claims were not addressed during an interview with NABJ today.
Ryan Wesley Routh was arrested on Sunday after Secret Service agents found a rifle while scouting the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida. Authorities say Trump was playing on the course and was about 300-500 yards away. Agents fired shots at the gunman, who then fled in a vehicle and was arrested in a neighboring county. Routh has been charged with two gun possession violations.
Harris said she has complete confidence in the Secret Service to protect her and her family, but added that “not everyone has Secret Service protection, and too many people in our country right now do not feel safe.”
Harris slammed comments made by Trump and running mate J.D. Vance about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, suggesting that it had “terrorized an entire community.” Both Republican candidates have not backed down from allegations that immigrants are stealing and eating people’s pets, but city officials and the state’s governor, Mike DeWine, have said there is no evidence to support that.
“When you’re in a position like this, when you have a microphone in front of you, you have to understand on a really deep level how much your words mean,” Harris said, citing bomb threats that have occurred in the area since then.
She added: “It’s exhausting, it’s harmful, it’s hateful and it’s based on the same old things that we should not tolerate.”
Janiya Thomas, the Trump campaign’s black media director, said in a statement that Harris “has let down Black Americans. She told NABJ that three and a half years of failed policies have left grocery prices soaring and the American Dream unattainable for young Americans.”
