Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders American Vote Town Hall in Philadelphia on Saturday.
Credit: Ethan YoungVice President Kamala Harris expressed strong support for President and former Penn professor Joe Biden during remarks in Philadelphia on Saturday, and warned that former President and 1968 Wharton graduate Donald Trump would become a “dictator” if reelected.
Harris’s remarks, which took place hours before an assassination attempt on Trump in western Pennsylvania, occurred at the APIAVote Presidential Town Hall, a voter engagement event for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Just days earlier, the group released polling data showing that Biden’s support among AAPI voters has dropped 8% from 2020 and now sits at 46%.
Harris called the 2024 election the “most existential, consequential, and important” election “of our lifetime” in her remarks.
“We always knew this election would be tough,” Harris said, referencing the difficulties the Biden campaign has faced since the first presidential debate of the year on June 27. “The past few days have been a reminder that running for president of the United States is never easy, nor should it be.”
In discussing the lasting effects of “so-called urban renewal projects,” Harris highlighted the Biden administration's financial support for a project aimed at capping the Vine Street Expressway.
A video shown prior to Harris’s remarks — which featured several Penn students — highlighted grassroots efforts to save Philadelphia’s Chinatown amid plans for the construction of a new arena for the Philadelphia 76ers nearby.
The video also included clips of Ginger Arts Center, a new youth and arts center located in Chinatown started by college and high school youth involved with Students for the Preservation of Chinatown.
The vice president spent a portion of her remarks doubling down on her verbal attacks of Trump and looking to distinguish Biden’s legislative record from that of his predecessor.
“Someone who vilifies immigrants, who promotes xenophobia, who stokes hate, and who incites fear should never again have the chance to stand behind a microphone,” Harris said. “[He] should never again have the chance to stand behind the seal of the president.”
Harris warned that if reelected, Trump would cut Social Security and double down on attacks on reproductive rights.
“We have fought together, worked too hard, and fought too long to see our daughters grow up in a world with fewer rights than our mothers,” she said.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators interrupted Harris’s speech with chants of “Free, free Palestine” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” In response, others in the audience began chanting “Four more years.” The demonstrators were escorted out of the venue.
Several other politicians also spoke at the town hall event, including City Councilmember and 1990 Penn graduate Nina Ahmad and U.S. Reps. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii), and Ted Lieu (D-Calif.).
Harris’s remarks in Philadelphia came amid a busy political weekend in Pennsylvania, a state which both the Biden and Trump campaigns know will be essential to a victory come November. First Lady Jill Biden delivered remarks in Pittsburgh, while Trump held a rally in Butler, Pa., which was cut short after shots rang out.
NBC10 Philadelphia reporter and town hall moderator Frances Wang told audience members that the Trump campaign had been invited to participate in the event. However, no representatives from the campaign were present.
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