- Trump: "I have a right to attack you personally"
Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump has defended his personal attacks against Democratic rival Kamala Harris. "I believe I have a right to personally attack her," Trump said at a press conference in his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. "I'm very angry with her."
Trump, 78, also said that others are very angry with Harris for what she's doing to the country and how she's using the justice system against opponents. "I have no respect for her intelligence, and I think she'll be a terrible president," he said. That's why it's so important for him to win the election in November.
Harris, who became the Democratic presidential candidate after Joe Biden withdrew from the race, is running against Trump in the election. The Republican regularly disparages her at campaign events, calling her "dumb," "crazy," and a dangerous "radical leftist."
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Particularly controversial: Trump's remark that Harris has 'Suddenly become black'
Trump also recently attacked his rival sharply regarding her heritage and skin color. He claimed that Harris had long only promoted her Indian ancestry and then "suddenly became black," at an event before the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago. This caused a stir. Harris is the daughter of a black Jamaican and her mother is from India.
Several Republicans, including Nikki Haley, who also ran as a presidential candidate in the party's primaries, have publicly advised Trump to make fewer personal attacks on Harris and focus more on substance.
The election can't be won by talking about which "race" Harris belongs to or that she's "dumb," Haley said on Tuesday on the right-wing Fox News channel. Haley lost to Trump in the Republican presidential primaries but now supports his candidacy.
Donald Trump: "I have to do it my way"
Trump was asked about these statements by Haley and others during the press conference but dismissed such advice. His campaign is going well, Trump said. "I think we're hitting a nerve." This is a different kind of race, he said. "All we have to do is label our opponent as a communist or a socialist, or someone who will destroy our country."
Trump said he appreciates Haley's advice but added, "I have to do it my way." Harris is also attacking him personally and calling him "weird." Compared to what the other side is doing, and how radical and "sick" his opponents are, he said he's running a "very quiet campaign." "I mean, we're here. There's no shouting."
Harris leads Trump slightly in polls
Trump's press conference was largely a campaign rally, where the former president spent the first 45 minutes explaining why he thinks the country would go downhill with Harris. Supporters were present and interrupted his remarks several times with cheers. Afterwards, Trump shook hands with his supporters, took selfies with them, and signed autographs.
In multiple nationwide polls, Harris is now slightly ahead of Trump. Her campaign team announced on Thursday that, in addition to a previously agreed-upon televised debate with Trump on September 10, there will be a second debate in October. No specific date was given for the second debate at this time. Trump's campaign team had not yet issued a statement. A televised debate for vice-presidential candidates Tim Walz and Vance is scheduled for October 1.
In response to advice from Republican figures like Nikki Haley, Trump has insisted on continuing his personal attacks against Kamala Harris during his campaign, stating, "I have to do it my way." Moreover, several other Republicans have expressed concerns about the effectiveness of these personal attacks, suggesting that focusing on substance rather than attacks on Harris's heritage or intelligence could be more beneficial for Trump's election chances.
