On Monday, while campaigning in Wisconsin, Vice President Kamala Harris once again slammed former President Trump's actions on abortion, which has garnered national attention. But she has maintained her silence on the war in Gaza, with other issues brewing elsewhere in the key areas of young voters she is courting.
A split screen showed the benefits and challenges for Democrats heading into November's presidential election. The party is trying to buoy voters over a wave of abortion restrictions in many states since the Roe v. Wade reversal, but faces internal divisions among key parts of the coalition. ing.
On Monday, as protests gripped East Coast college campuses, Harris kept her focus squarely on Trump and his attacks on women. She cast the 2024 election as a choice over preserving the freedoms that are “the cornerstone of America's promise.”
“This is a time when we have to stand up for our basic, fundamental values ​​and principles,” she told about 100 people at a community center in La Crosse, in the western part of the state. “If you think about what's at stake, it's definitely about freedom.”
Abortion rights have been a focus of President Biden's reelection bid, and Harris has played a leading role.
Her lacrosse event was part of a day-long trip to battleground states focused on public service and campaigning centered around health care and reproductive rights. Earlier in the day, Harris attended a roundtable with health care workers and leaders where she announced two Biden administration rule changes aimed at benefiting hundreds of thousands of health care workers. did.
The changes create new, first-of-its-kind national minimum staffing standards for federally funded nursing homes and require 80% of Medicaid payments for home health services to be Requiring funds to pay for medical services would create new requirements to help home health care workers earn more. Labor as opposed to management fees.
However, her silence on the Israeli-Hamas conflict is notable. Harris has sought to shore up Biden's weaknesses with young and black voters. She has visited South Carolina repeatedly, began a college tour last year, and has been on the campaign trail advocating for abortion rights and promoting Democratic policies.
in an interview Speaking with a television news reporter in Milwaukee on Monday about anti-Semitism in America, particularly after the Hamas attack in Israel that triggered the Gaza conflict, she said, “What we've been seeing since October 7th is , anti-Semitism is only increasing.” She is deeply concerned.
Wisconsin is a crucial battleground state for the Democratic Party, part of the so-called Blue Wall, and one of the few states likely to decide the November election.
“We're not fighting something. We're fighting for everything we believe is good and right about this country,” Harris said.