Vice President Kamala Harris plans to capitalize on what her campaign called a "commanding debate performance" against former President Donald Trump, her rival for the White House in November’s election, per sources familiar with the campaign’s plans.
The hectic weekend of campaigning, to be followed by local media spots in battleground states and a discussion with journalists from the National Association of Black Journalists, is part of what appears to be a more aggressive phase on the trail for the vice president.
What You Need To Know
- Vice President Kamala Harris seeks to capitalize on a "commanding debate performance" against former President Donald Trump with a campaign blitz this weekend
- Harris and her surrogates will make appearances in battleground states in nearly all corners of the country, as she plans events in North Carolina and Pennsylvania on Thursday and Friday
- The campaign has begun advertising off of the Tuesday rally, beginning with a 30-second spot contrasting the vice president's view for the country with Trump's, in an ad titled "Leadership"
- Harris is expected to set up local interviews with media outlets in battleground states, and plans to have a conversation with reporters affiliated with the National Association of Black Journalists
Harris will headline her "New Way Forward Tour" of battleground states with a blitz of rallies in Charlotte and Greensboro, North Carolina, on Thursday, followed by events in Johnston and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on Friday.
Meanwhile, vice presidential running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will hold a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Thursday, with two more events in the Great Lakes State on Friday. That same day, he’ll head to Wisconsin to meet with volunteers before holding a rally event at the University of Wisconsin, Superior campus.
Second gentleman Doug Emhoff will swing through the American southwest Thursday, with an early afternoon in Tucson, Arizona and a volunteer rally Thursday night in Henderson, Nevada. He’ll then head across the country to campaign at The Villages in Florida, a master-planned, age-restricted community to speak with seniors in Trump’s home state.
Gwen Walz will tour New England, with a volunteer event in Manchester, New Hampshire, on Thursday, followed by an Educators for Harris-Walz rally to discuss Trump’s plans to eliminate the federal education system. She’ll then travel to two events in Maine on Friday, including a campaign event in Portland.
On the advertising and engagement front, the Harris campaign has been "poring over footage" from Tuesday’s debate to mine for notable moments for campaign ads. The campaign’s first ad from the debate, titled "Leadership," was released Wednesday evening. The 30-second spot draws a contrast between Harris and her "focus on the future" and sense of optimism, against Trump’s insistence that the U.S. is a "failing nation," a "nation in serious decline" and a "nation that is dying."
Harris has been criticized for a dearth of interviews and interactions with the media, and the campaign appears ready to challenge that. The vice president is likely to do local battleground state interviews and is expected to join a discussion with the National Association of Black Journalists, more than a month after the organization's national convention made headlines.
On July 31, Trump’s fireside chat-style panel interview with three NABJ reporters turned combative immediately, leading to an exchange in which he baselessly questioned Harris’s race and heritage as an Indian American and a Black woman. Harris has since dismissed his attacks as part of his "same old, tired playbook."
Harris was unable to attend the NABJ convention, though the organization announced that it was in talks with the vice president to hold a virtual conversation.