Trump Launches Battleground State Tour, Targets Harris as New Rival

Trump begins visits to battleground states, calls Harris a 'country destroyer'

As Democrats kicked off their convention in Chicago, Donald Trump sought Monday to regain his footing after weeks of adjusting to Vice President Kamala Harris as his rival. The former president and GOP nominee spoke at a factory in Pennsylvania, the first in a string of stops aimed at undercutting the Democratic celebration. He is holding daily events in battleground states tied to subjects on which Republicans think they hold an advantage, including the economy, crime and safety, national security and the border. "Kamala Harris is an economy wrecker and a country destroyer," Trump told factory workers and supporters gathered at Precision Custom Components, a company that makes components for military and nuclear use. This will be Trump's busiest week of campaigning since the winter, when he faced a large field of challengers in the Republican primary. And his focus on policy in battleground states reflects the concerns of Trump allies, who have urged him to try to broaden his appeal with swing voters as they grow more nervous about Harris' competitiveness. Personal attacks In the weeks since President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid, Trump has appeared at times in denial and has launched a series of deeply personal attacks on Harris. He has lied about her crowds by claiming images of them were generated by artificial intelligence, talked about her looks, and played on racist tropes by questioning her racial identity as she runs to become the first woman, the first Black woman and the first person of South Asian descent to reach the Oval Office. The outbursts have raised concerns among allies that Trump is damaging his chance in what they believe is a winnable race. "If you have a policy debate for president, he wins. Donald Trump the provocateur, the showman, may not win this election," South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press," echoing others' concerns. Graham said he wanted Trump to focus on his plans for the economy and the U.S.-Mexico border. "Policy is the key to the White House," he said. Some supporters at his rallies agree with that advice. "He needs to quit talking about Biden other than Harris piggybacking on those policies," said Kory Jeno, 53, of Swannanoa, North Carolina, who was waiting to see Trump speak last week in nearby Asheville. "He needs to keep the conversation on the issues and what he's going to do for Americans instead of running off on tangents where he's just bashing her and that sort of thing." Trump "needs to stop the personal attacks," said Mary Ray, 75, who advised him to "be discreet when you're talking." Asked whether she was thinking about Trump's most incendiary personal attacks -- calling Harris a "nasty woman" and questioning how she discusses her biracial heritage -- Ray furrowed her brow and pursed her lips. "It hurts him with other voters," Ray said. Others have urged him to ramp up his schedule and to pivot away from rallies, where large crowds of his most ardent supporters cheer on his most incendiary rhetoric. "The big rallies are fine, but I like him when he goes to a restaurant or just talks to anybody off the street," said Bruce Fields, 70, who works in commercial real estate in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. "When he is talking to ordinary people, it adds a personal touch." Medal message But even at events billed as policy speeches, Trump often gets sidetracked and undercuts his own message. The challenge for Republicans was on display last week, when Trump invited reporters to his golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey, to talk about the economy. As he stood before an assortment of grocery store items, Trump largely stuck to his intended message, talking about rising prices and blaming Biden and Harris for enacting policies that he said had caused them. But later that night, he gave Democrats new fodder when he hosted an event about antisemitism with billionaire Republican donor Miriam Adelson. He said receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian award, was "much better" than receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor, because recipients of the nation's highest military honor are often badly injured or dead. On Saturday at a rally in Pennsylvania, Trump repeatedly swerved from a message focused on the economy to personal attacks against Harris, including a declaration that he is "much better looking" than she is. On Monday, he largely stuck to his prepared remarks as he slammed Harris' approach to the economy and energy and pledged major new investments in power plants and energy infrastructure if he wins, including small nuclear plants. Still, he veered into the personal, attacking Harris' father, a Stanford University economics professor born in Jamaica, as a "Marxist," and calling her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a "whack job." "Between his movement and her laugh, there's a lot of craziness," he said. Reset denied Trump aides deny they are engaged in any kind of effort to reset the campaign, even as they bring in new hires, including veterans of Trump's 2016 and 2020 runs for the White House. The former president's advisers remain bullish about his chances. They insist that Harris and Democrats are caught up in a fleeting moment of excitement with their new nominee and are confident voters will sour on the vice president as they learn more about her past comments and positions. They intend to spend the race's final stretch painting her as a liberal extremist and contrasting the candidates' differing approaches on the economy, crime and immigration. Some polls show Harris performing better than Biden in battleground states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, though most still suggest a tight race. About half of U.S. adults -- 48% -- have a very or somewhat favorable view of Harris, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That's somewhat better than the 41% of adults who say they have a favorable opinion of Trump.

Trump visits battleground states as he adjusts to Harris as new rival | BreakingNews.ie

As Democrats kick off their convention in Chicago, Donald Trump is trying to regain his footing after weeks of struggling to adjust to Vice President Kamala Harris as his rival. The former US president and GOP nominee delivered a speech at a factory in Pennsylvania on Monday as he attempts to undercut the Democratic celebration with a jam-packed schedule. He is holding daily events in battleground states tied to subjects where Republicans think they hold an advantage, including the economy, crime and safety, national security and the border. "Kamala Harris is an economy wrecker and a country destroyer," Mr Trump told factory workers and supporters gathered at Precision Custom Components, a company that makes components for military and nuclear use. It is Mr Trump's busiest week of campaigning since the winter, when he faced a large field of challengers in the Republican primary. And his focus on policy in battleground states reflects the concerns of Mr Trump allies, who have urged him to try to broaden his appeal with swing voters as they grow more nervous about Ms Harris' competitiveness. In the weeks since President Joe Biden dropped his re-election bid, Mr Trump has appeared at times in denial and has launched a series of deeply personal attacks on Ms Harris. He has lied about her crowds by claiming images of them were generated by AI, talked about her looks, and played on racist tropes by questioning her racial identity as she runs to become the first woman, the first Black woman and the first person of South Asian descent to reach the Oval Office. The outbursts have raised concerns among allies that Mr Trump is damaging his chance in what they believe is an eminently winnable race. "If you have a policy debate for president, he wins. Donald Trump the provocateur, the showman, may not win this election," South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham said Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press, echoing others' concerns. Mr Graham said he wanted Mr Trump to focus on his plans for the economy and the US-Mexico border. Some supporters at his rallies agree with that advice. "He needs to quit talking about Biden other than Harris piggybacking on those policies," said Kory Jeno, a 53-year-old from Swannanoa, North Carolina, who was waiting to see Trump speak last week in nearby Asheville. "He needs to keep the conversation on the issues and what he's going to do for Americans instead of running off on tangents where he's just bashing her and that sort of thing. Mr Trump "needs to stop the personal attacks", echoed 75-year-old Mary Ray, who advised him to "be discreet when you're talking". Asked whether she was thinking about Mr Trump's most incendiary personal attacks -- calling Ms Harris a "nasty woman" and questioning how she discusses her biracial heritage -- Ms Ray furrowed her brow and pursed her lips. "It hurts him with other voters," she said. Others have urged him to ramp up his schedule and to pivot away from rallies, where large crowds of his most ardent supporters cheer on his most incendiary rhetoric. "The big rallies are fine, but I like him when he goes to a restaurant or just talks to anybody off the street," said Bruce Fields, 70, who works in commercial real estate in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. "When he is talking to ordinary people, it adds a personal touch."

Donald Trump (pretty much) sticks to the script on Harris. Can that last?

The Secret Service is amping up its protection of Trump, including using bulletproof ballistic glass at some of his outdoor rallies. WASHINGTON - Former President Donald Trump on Monday began efforts to counter-program the Democratic convention by doing something relatively unusual: Sticking to the script (for the most part). Democratic candidate Kamala Harris "puts America last - I put America first," Trump said during prepared remarks at Precision Custom Components in York, Pa., the first in a string of events that will take him to battleground states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona, and Nevada. To be sure, the ex-president did find time to lob several insults at "Comrade Kamala," despite admonitions from other Republicans that he stick to issues. The former president also said that President Joe Biden was the victim of a Democratic "coup," drawing a sharp retort from the incumbent who withdrew from the race against Trump. "His stability is still in question," Biden told reporters during the walk-through for his convention speech on Monday night. A few things to know from Day One of the Democratic convention, Trump style: More: Secret Service approves bulletproof glass for Donald Trump at outdoor rallies Sticking to the issues? We'll see The first political surprise of the week: Trump began a campaign event on time. A second one: He pretty much stuck to the issues when it came to critiquing Harris' economic policies, saying they would lead to more inflation, higher taxes, less domestic energy production, and an over-regulated economy. Don't talk about a "New Trump" just yet, though; Trump still laid in some insults to Harris, and he has more speeches every day this week. More: Angering vets, Trump says civilian award is 'much better' than Medal of Honor Some commentators noted that Trump continued to wander rhetorically during his speech, occasionally going off on tangents. Republican strategist Karl Rove, on Fox News, said Trump needs "a much more disciplined message" moving forward. For the past week, Trump allies have taken to television to urge the GOP nominee to focus on issues and avoid slashing attacks on Harris during his tour of battleground states. Republican Running mate JD Vance is also on the road this week. In an appearance Sunday on NBC's "Meet The Press," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Trump's "policies are good for America, and if you have a policy debate for president he wins. Donald Trump, the provocateur, the showman may not win this election." Does Trump miss Biden? Trump again made clear how much he misses running against Biden, whom he led in numerous polls before his withdrawal from the presidential race. The former president says he should still be running against Biden, and that Democrats mounted a "coup" against their president. His primary concern: Harris is moving up in the polls, and appears to be a much bigger threat to Trump's re-election than Biden was. Biden and other Democrats said Trump is not entitled to critique Democratic nomination decisions. More: Donald Trump posts fake Taylor Swift endorsement, Swifties for Trump AI images Trump is keeping his eyes on Harris. And Harris is watching right back While Trump and the Republicans watch Harris and her convention, the Harris team is responding to Trump. The Republican candidate will be a topic of many convention speeches, and Democrats responded to Trump's talk throughout the day. In a statement after the Pennsylvania campaign rally, the Harris campaign said Trump's economic plans will wind up hurting most Americans. "It was impossible to tell what Donald Trump was trying to say today, but Americans should be clear on what he will do," the statement said. "He will raise costs on middle class families by $3,900 a year." On the social media site X, the Harris rapid response team said: "Trump left office with the worst jobs record since the Great Depression," the Harris campaign said on the social media site X.