Last night, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to a large crowd gathered on the Ellipse, with the backdrop of the White House. Her speech slammed former President Donald Trump as “obsessed with revenge” and “consumed with grievance.” However, it is not the speech, which had been hyped up for a week, that has drawn headlines this morning but President Joe Biden’s remarks during an organizing call.
“The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters,” Biden said, referring to Trump.
Though the White House immediately began cleanup duty, the comment took off, with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) breaking the news of it to Trump in the middle of a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania, last night.
“You can’t lead America if you don’t love the American People,” Trump said in a social media post, referring to Biden’s comments. “Kamala Harris and Joe Biden have shown they are both unfit to be President of the United States.”
2024 ELECTIONS LIVE UPDATES: LATEST NEWS ON THE TRUMP-HARRIS PRESIDENTIAL RACE
Now, instead of the attention being on the closing message that Harris was hoping to set with the Ellipse speech, or on the criticisms of Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally, she will have to put out some fires, including from Democrats explicitly disagreeing with Biden’s gaffe.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, a spokesperson for Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), who is locked in a tight race, responded with “No” when asked if he agrees with Biden. Similarly, Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, “I had not heard that until now, Kaitlan, so I’m kind of giving you my fresh reaction to it. I would never insult the good people of Pennsylvania or any Americans even if they chose to support a candidate who I didn’t support.”
What are the poll watchers watching?
The Republican National Committee has taken its pleas for poll watchers to a new level this election, with Co-Chairwoman Lara Trump working to assemble over 230,000 in 13 states, according to the Washington Examiner’s Kaelan Deese.
The rules for what poll watchers can and can’t do and where they can and can’t be vary by state. For example, in Pennsylvania, observers cannot be within 10 feet of a drop box. In Georgia, watchers are allowed within six feet.
“It’s pretty simple,” Jackie Doyer, Honest Elections Project’s legal policy director, told the Washington Examiner. “Poll watchers are really there just to watch and observe. Their roles are going to be limited to, you know, seeing what’s taking place and if there are any irregularities that they do see, then reporting that to the appropriate authority.”
Watchers are supposed to look for voting irregularities, such as intimidation, improper voting assistance, and campaigning too close. They can watch almost every part of the process, from the setup of voting machines to the transfer of ballots to a central counting site.
However, the practice has become volatile recently, with members of a state party receiving death threats for trying to recruit poll watchers.
Click here to read more about what poll workers can’t do and possible bias in poll workers versus watchers.
The candidates who could make history
Several House and Senate candidates in competitive 2024 races could become the first in their demographic, gender, or identity to walk the halls of Congress.
In Delaware, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) is all but ensured to win her race, which would make her the state’s first black and first female senator.
In surprisingly dramatic Maryland, Angela Alsobrooks would become the state’s first black female senator if she wins against former Gov. Larry Hogan. The race has seen millions of dollars poured into it, and Alsobrooks is polling ahead by 9 points.
Texas could get its first openly gay representative in Julie Johnson, who is running to succeed Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX), who is running to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
Click here to read more about candidates who could make history in New York, Washington, and Oregon.
More from us
Washington Commanders logo change effort could get a new Senate ally
Georgians want more of Michelle Obama in Democratic Party politics
Trump claims ‘nobody’s fault’ for comedian’s ‘nasty jokes’ about Puerto Rico at rally
House Republicans accuse ‘nonpartisan’ voter information group of spreading misinformation
Mike Rogers seeks to tie Slotkin to China in final campaign push
In case you missed it
READ IN FULL: Harris’s closing argument on Ellipse
Musk calls Wikipedia ‘broken’ after page resurfaces defining Trump as ‘fascist’
Supreme Court keeps RFK Jr. on Michigan and Wisconsin ballots
Harris haunted by gun buyback views in swing state Pennsylvania
What’s going on today
Harris will have a campaign stop in Raleigh, North Carolina, at 12:30 p.m., then head to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, at 4:30 p.m., and then end the day at a get-out-the-vote event in Madison, Wisconsin, at 8:30 p.m., in which she will be joined by Gracie Abrams, Mumford & Sons, Remi Wolf, and The National’s Matt Berninger and Aaron Dessner.
Trump will be in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, for a rally at 1 p.m. and then head to Green Bay, Wisconsin, for a rally at 6 p.m. There, he will be joined by Packers legend Brett Favre.
Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) will be visiting Asheville and Charlotte, North Carolina.
Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) will record an interview with Joe Rogan and then join former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard for a town hall in Bedford, Pennsylvania, at 5:30 p.m.
