Vice President Kamala Harris appeared on the campaign trail with Barack Obama for the first time, making closing arguments aimed at black voters in Atlanta’s eastern suburbs, a vibrant and iconic region of Georgia.
“Our fight is a fight for the future,” Harris said at a rally in Clarkston. She touched on familiar topics: reducing the cost of medicine, housing, and food. “I come from a middle-class background, but I never forget where I come from.
Harris said she believes "health care should be a right, not just a privilege for those who can afford it,” and President Trump will water down the Affordable Care Act and eliminate the $35 cap on insulin. He said he would.
The Democratic candidate also recently reaffirmed his support for abortion rights, citing the death of Amber Nicole Thurman, a Georgia woman who was found to have died as a result of the state’s abortion ban. “Donald Trump continues to refuse to acknowledge the pain and suffering he has caused…Women are being denied care during miscarriages,” Harris said.
Pollsters and commentators have suggested that Harris’ campaign is losing support among black male voters. This claim has little credibility among Democratic activists, who argue that conservatives are exaggerating the polling anomalies for political effect.
Democratic Georgia Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock spoke of President Trump’s history of racism and public acts of bigotry, saying, “I don’t think a significant number of people would vote for someone like Donald Trump.” Ta. he said: “We are not a monolith. There will be some… but we know who Donald Trump is. We are not confused.”
Nevertheless, the Harris campaign became more targeted toward black voters in its message toward the end. Harris said she rejects the idea that her ethnicity entitles her to black votes.
President Obama directed his anger at President Trump, criticizing his failures during the pandemic, his general incompetence, and, in the words of Trump’s former military personnel, wishing his rank-and-file officers had been more like Hitler. he accused.
President Trump’s erratic behavior has become “so commonplace that people don’t take it seriously anymore. Just because he’s acting stupid doesn’t mean his presidency is in jeopardy.” Not that.”
The campaign ramped up its black star power even further toward the end, bringing in actor Samuel L. Jackson and directors Spike Lee and Tyler Perry to warm the crowd.
Bruce Springsteen performs on stage. Photo: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
“I found the American dream here,” Perry said of how Atlanta helped him rise from poverty to success. He lived homeless, trying to scrape together enough money to stay in an extended stay hotel on Buford Highway, just a few miles from the stadium.
Perry, now a millionaire, owns much of the former Fort McPherson, a former Confederate military base. “We are all different shapes, sizes, and colors. But we are one.”
Bruce Springsteen also performed an acoustic set of “Promised Land,” “Land of Hopes and Dreams” and “Dancing in the Dark” before Obama and Harris spoke.
“Donald Trump is about to become the tyrant of America,” Springsteen said.
The city of Clarkston is said to be the most diverse square mile in America. As a center for refugee resettlement, women from Iraq in abayas walk to stores next to Nepalese immigrants, and children from Haiti and Somalia take to the streets of James R. Hallford Stadium. I often see him buying cola at a gas station. The meeting filled its capacity of 15,000 seats. According to the Harris campaign, 20,000 people participated.
“Among the people in this district, 50 countries are represented here. They are hard-working people. They are our brothers and sisters,” said U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, who represents the city. . “They are who we are. They are part of the fabric of America.”
While Clarkston has experienced historic revitalization in recent years, this area of DeKalb County continues to struggle for economic growth. The first and second deciles of poverty surround the city. Memorial Drive, once a flourishing business district, is the de facto dividing line between the prosperous, multiracial cities of northern DeKalb County and the economically challenged southern half of the county, which is majority black.
“The demographics of Clarkston are important,” said Jacqueline Smith, a Clarkston resident who attended the rally. “I saw little black girls walking around here, and I don’t think I’ll ever see anything like that again.”
Samuel L. Jackson attended the meeting. Photo: Eric S. Lesser/EPA
Smith said he parked on Robert E. Lee Boulevard in Stone Mountain on his way to the rally. The boulevard is named after the Confederate general and has a monument in Stone Mountain Park, the largest remaining Confederate monument in the United States. She said: “We’ve come a long way.”
Approximately 584,000 Georgians are naturalized citizens, the most of the eight swing states. Approximately one in six Georgians in metro Atlanta was born outside the United States. Naturalized citizens tend to have lower turnout rates, and elections in Georgia are determined by turnout.
In a historic turn, early voting in Georgia is setting records, with nearly a third of Georgians already voting. Some counties have already exceeded the 50% turnout threshold. The Harris campaign sent out a text message to all supporters in the state asking them to volunteer for two hours door-knocking and phone banking.
“This man is not good or bad news, and it’s up to us to stop him,” said Sen. Jon Ossoff, along with others, in honoring the sacrifice of the late iconic Congressman John Lewis today. He cited it as a call to action. “John Lewis shed his blood on that bridge, which allowed us to rise to this moment,” he said.
