OAKS, Pa. (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump took their fight for Pennsylvania to opposite ends of the state Monday, with Harris speaking in the northwest corner in Erie and Trump in the southeastern suburbs of Philadelphia.
Democrat Harris and Republican Trump have been making regular appearances in what is the country’s largest battleground state — it was Harris’ 10th visit to Pennsylvania this campaign season, and just last week Trump made stops in both Scranton and Reading.
Harris at an evening campaign rally homed in on Trump’s comments over the weekend suggesting that the U.S. military could potentially be used to deal with “the enemy from within.”
She argued that the comments made in a Fox News “Sunday Morning Futures” interview are the latest example of threatening rhetoric from the former president that should concern Americans about what a potential second Trump term could look like.
“He considers anyone who doesn’t support him or who will not bend to his will an enemy of our country,” Harris said after playing a clip of the comment on the jumbo screen in the Erie arena. “This is among the reasons I believe so strongly that a second Trump term would be a huge risk for America and dangerous.”
She added that Trump is increasingly displaying “unstable and unhinged” behavior.
Trump made the comment in response to a question about “outside agitators” potentially disrupting Election Day, pivoting to what he said is a foe closer to home.
“I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within,” Trump said. He added: “We have some very bad people. We have some sick people, radical left lunatics. And I think they’re the big — and it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military, because they can’t let that happen.”
Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, defended Trump’s comments during a campaign stop in Minneapolis earlier Monday.
“Is it a justifiable use of those assets if they’re rioting and looting and burning cities down to the ground? Of course it is. Right?” Vance told reporters. “I think the question is, is it a justifiable use of assets, depends on what’s actually happening.”
Trump beat Hillary Clinton by more than 40,000 votes in Pennsylvania on his way to winning the presidency in 2016. But Joe Biden, a Scranton native, beat Trump by about 80,000 votes in the state four years ago.
Harris’ called Erie a “pivot” area for her campaign, a Democratic-majority city of about 94,000 people bordered by suburbs and rural areas with significant numbers of Republicans. Erie County is often cited as one of the state’s reliable bellwether regions, where the electorate has a decidedly moderate voting record. Trump visited Erie on Sept. 29.
Harris also talked up early voting during her rally. Mail-in voting is well underway in the state where some 7 million people are likely to cast votes in the presidential race.
“If you have already received your ballot in the mail, please do not wait,” Harris urged her supporters. “Fill it out and return it today or tomorrow. But please get it out.”
Beforehand, she stopped by a newly opened coffee shop and record store in Erie as she continues to press her case for Black men’s support.
The visit to LegendErie Records and Coffee House, a Black-owned small business, came after her campaign unveiled a plan earlier Monday to give Black men more economic opportunities and other chances. The campaign is trying to step up outreach to Black men, a key voting bloc that has some Democrats concerned about a possible lack of enthusiasm.
Trump spoke at a town hall Monday in suburban Oaks. Responding to a man who said his dream of homeownership feels out of reach, Trump said regulations make it too expensive to build in some places. He repeated his pledge to increase U.S. oil drilling, which he said would drive down costs, though domestic production is already at record highs.
“We’re going to drill baby drill, we’re going to have so much energy and we’re going to bring prices down,” Trump said.
He also claimed that government data from crime statistics to jobless numbers is “fake,” alleging the numbers are manipulated to help the incumbent Democrats.
Trump cut short his remarks after twice being interrupted by medical emergencies, turning the town hall into a concert instead. After the second incident, Trump spoke for a few more minutes and then called for music. He then stood onstage — at times swaying along — as music played.
Trump rallygoer Tom Bonanno said he believed there was greater enthusiasm for Trump this year than in the former president’s two previous campaigns.
”I’m feeling a shift because the economy affects everyone,” Bonanno said. “It’s not just going to be on, you’re feeling joy or happiness or whatever they’re running on. It’s about the economy once again.”
Pennsylvania and its 19 electoral votes, the most of any swing state, have generated the most attention by far from the Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns. Including Monday’s scheduled events, they will have made 46 stops in the state, according to Associated Press tracking of the campaigns’ public events.
Michigan, with 33 visits, and Wisconsin, with 29, are the next most-visited states, illustrating how both campaigns are focusing on winning states that had been part of the Democrats’ so-called “blue wall” until Trump emerged as the Republican standard-bearer.
Democrats have won three straight elections for Pennsylvania governor, and both current U.S. senators are Democrats, but the state’s legislature is closely divided.
Cindy Sunday, 67, of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, said she has been disappointed that the Biden administration undid some of Trump’s policies on the U.S.-Mexico border.
“I don’t care that people say ‘he says things that are off color, and this and that.’ Get over that,” said Sunday, who went to Trump’s rally in Oaks. “There are so many more serious things in life to be upset about. I just don’t go for that.”
Scolforo reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and Weissert from Erie, Pennsylvania. Associated Press journalists Tassanee Vejpongsa in Oaks, Pennsylvania, Aamer Madhani in Washington and Jonathan J. Cooper in Phoenix contributed to this report.
