Harris campaign pounces on Trump rally " garbage" remarks in final push for Latino vote
Source: CBS News
November 1, 2024 / 5:47 PM EDT
Going into the final weekend before Election Day, the Harris campaign is continuing to remind voters of comedian Tony Hinchcliffe's joke at a Trump rally last Sunday that referred to Puerto Rico as an "island of garbage."
A senior Harris campaign official says internal data shows the vice president is winning over battleground voters "who have made up their minds in the last week" and by a double-digit margin. The campaign, in a phone briefing with reporters, attributed voters' late break to Harris to the negative response to that joke, as well as to former President Donald Trump's violent rhetoric in the closing days of the campaign, including his recent remark using violent imagery to disparage former Wyoming GOP Rep. Liz Cheney.
"All of these things are breaking through to the American people and in the closing days of his campaign, [Trump] is clearly focused, as the vice president has said, on his 'enemies list,' which is getting longer," the campaign official said.
What was intended to be a joke about Puerto Rico spawned widespread anger among Latinos, a critical voting bloc. Across battleground states, hundreds have signed up to volunteer for the campaign since Sunday. Celebrities with millions of followers, like Bad Bunny and Jennifer Lopez, publicly announced their support for Harris this past week. Spanish-language newspapers have also endorsed the vice president. Latino organizations have also stepped in to help with field operations to mobilize the undecided voters.
Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/harris-campaign-latino-vote-trump-rally-garbage-joke/