Vice President Kamala Harris’ town hall on CNN | CNN Politics

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Harris pressed on key issues by undecided Pennsylvania voters in CNN town hall

Maureen Chowdhury Elise Hammond Tori B. Powell Aditi Sangal Jack Forrest Kaanita Iyer Piper Hudspeth Blackburn
By Maureen Chowdhury, Michelle Shen, Elise Hammond, Tori B. Powell, Aditi Sangal, Jack Forrest, Michael Williams, Kaanita Iyer and Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN
Updated 3:50 PM EDT, Thu October 24, 2024
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What Dana Bash’s sources are telling her about Harris’ performance
01:54 • Source: CNN
01:54

What you need to know

• Tonight’s town hall: Vice President Kamala Harris said “Yes, I do” when asked at tonight’s CNN town hall if she believes Donald Trump is a fascist, as she drilled down on the dangers of a second Trump term while answering questions from undecided voters in the battleground state of Pennsylvania.

• Making her pitch: She addressed a range of issues as she tried to draw a contrast to Trump, including immigration, abortion access and the Middle East, while vowing to work with Republicans. Trump was invited but declined to participate in a CNN town hall. Here are takeaways from tonight’s event and fact checks on Harris’ claims.

• Trump campaigns in Georgia: Meanwhile, the former president made his case to voters and slammed the Democratic candidates at a rally in Duluth, Georgia, as the latest CNN average of national polling still finds no clear leader in the presidential race less than two weeks until Election Day.

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Takeaways from CNN's town hall with Kamala Harris

From CNN's Eric Bradner, Gregory Krieg, Arit John and Daniel Strauss
Vice President Kamala Harris participates in a CNN Presidential Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Anderson Cooper in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday, October 23.
Vice President Kamala Harris participates in a CNN Presidential Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Anderson Cooper in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday, October 23.
Rebecca Wright/CNN

Over and over, Vice President Kamala Harris argued at a CNN town hall Wednesday night that Republican rival Donald Trump is “unstable” and “unfit to serve.”

The Democratic nominee’s message in the closing weeks 2024 presidential race is squarely focused on warning Americans — particularly undecided independents and moderate Republicans — that Trump poses a threat to the nation’s core principles.

Here are some takeaways:

  • Border security: The vice president was pressed on border security. Harris argued that the Biden administration, and she personally believed that executive actions were just short-term solutions and that a long-term fix could only happen through a bipartisan agreement in Congress. She stressed the need for a large bipartisan bill on border security. She contrasted that with Trump’s record on border security and she mocked him for failing to fulfill his promise to build a border wall and make Mexico pay for it.
  • Differentiating from Biden: Harris has faced repeated questions on the trail over how — and to what degree — she would break from President Joe Biden on policy. On Wednesday night, she argued that, if she was elected, change would follow. “I bring to this role my own ideas and my own experience. I represent a new generation of leadership on a number of issues and believe that we have to actually take new approaches.” After ticking off a few major policy plans, like having Medicare cover home health care for the elderly, Harris returned to what she described as “a new approach.” “I bring a whole set of different experiences to this job,” she said.
  • The Middle East: One undecided voter in the audience asked Harris what she would do to “ensure not another Palestinian dies due to bombs being funded by US tax dollars.” Harris said it was “unconscionable” how many innocent Palestinians have died, but that she hoped the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar — who helped plan the October 7 attack and was killed by Israel earlier this month — would create an opportunity to end the conflict. When asked about those considering voting for a third-party candidate or sitting at home due to the current US approach to the conflict, she said she believed those same voters care about their president’s approach to other issues, including the cost of groceries and reproductive rights.

Read more takeaways from Harris’ CNN town hall.

Suspect arrested in shootings of DNC office in Arizona had over 200 guns in his home, officials find

From The Associated Press

A suspect has been arrested in connection with three separate shootings in 20 days that damaged a Democratic National Committee campaign office in suburban Phoenix, authorities said Wednesday.

Tempe police said Jeffrey Michael Kelly, 60, also is accused of hanging several political signs lined with razor blades on Tuesday in Ahwatukee, an affluent suburb of Phoenix where most voters have chosen Democrats in recent elections.

Authorities said the hand-painted signs were attached to palm trees and appeared to criticize Democrats and their presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris.

Kelly was being held on three felony counts of acts of terrorism and four other counts related to the shootings, according to police.

Police said Kelly allegedly fired BB pellets and then gunshots at the glass front door and a window of the Arizona Democrats’ field office in the early morning hours of September 16, September 23 and October 6. Nobody was inside during the shootings.

Kelly had more than 200 guns and over 250,000 rounds of ammunition in his home, leading law enforcement to believe he may have been planning a mass casualty event, Maricopa County prosecutor Neha Bhatia said at his initial court appearance on Wednesday.

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