Harris addresses “freedom” at rally at Trump’s convention site

MILWAUKEE — A few weeks ago, Milwaukee’s basketball arena was filled with ardent supporters of former President Donald Trump and decorated with his slogan “Make America Great Again.”

On Tuesday, it was reissued in the style of Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign, with one word lining the audience on thousands of signs and several giant billboards at the Fiserv Forum: “Freedom.”

Harris has used the word as a core message of her campaign, recasting Democratic priorities such as abortion access, voting rights and gun violence prevention in terms of freedom. On Tuesday, the vice president delivered that message during a swing-state trip from her convention in Chicago, underscoring the importance of Wisconsin and its 10 electoral votes.

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“We are witnessing a full-scale attack across the country on the basic freedoms and rights that have been hard fought and won. These include the freedom to vote, the freedom to be safe from gun violence, the freedom to love who you love openly and proudly,” she said.

Harris also spoke out in favor of abortion access, arguing that her platform “demands a woman's freedom to make decisions about her own body without the government telling her what to do.”

“You know, by the way, I don't know what's wrong with these people. I mean, they just don't seem to trust women,” she said. “Well, we trust women.”

Harris' rally at the same venue where Trump had accepted the Republican nomination at the Republican convention a few weeks earlier also highlighted the renewed optimism among Democrats since then.

In mid-July, relieved Republicans gathered around Trump as he delivered his first campaign speeches after the former president narrowly escaped an assassination attempt.

At the same time, there was turmoil and disagreement within the Democratic Party over whether President Joe Biden should stay in the 2024 presidential race after his disastrous performance in the debate.

Republicans “left here feeling good. They felt good. The thing was over,” Harris' running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, said at the rally. “Well, believe me, Milwaukee, a hell of a lot can change in four weeks.”

According to the Harris campaign team, more than 15,000 people attended the rally on Tuesday.

In the middle of her speech, Harris interrupted her remarks to call for a paramedic for a rally attendee near the stage and asked the crowd to form a path.

“We'll get through this,” she said as the situation seemed to be dissolving. “That's who we are, right? That's what defines us: looking out for each other.”

More than four hours before Harris' speech, protesters began streaming into the arena, wearing flashing red, white and blue armbands and dancing to the music before Harris took the stage.

“This is a historic moment and as a woman of color, I'm excited to see how far this will go. I just want to show my support and be part of history,” said Linda Fair, a resident of Beloit, Wisconsin, who attended the rally.

Harris' rally coincided with the second night of the Democratic National Convention 90 miles away. Harris and Walz joined briefly at the end of the ceremonial roll call of delegates and were expected to return to Chicago after their speeches, according to several campaign officials familiar with their activities.

The 2020 Democratic National Convention was originally scheduled to take place in Milwaukee, but due to Covid precautions, most of the program had to be held virtually.

“I think by returning to Milwaukee and Wisconsin, the Vice President is showing in a very concrete way that she has not forgotten Milwaukee. She has not forgotten Wisconsin. She has not forgotten the voters here,” said Milwaukee's Democratic mayor, Cavalier Johnson.

The Harris campaign viewed the rally as an opportunity to engage directly with voters in swing states as the party's convention approaches, according to a source familiar with the campaign's thinking.

Wisconsin, a swing state, is a key target for the Harris campaign after Biden's candidacy turned the state into a Democratic win in 2020. In the last presidential election, Democrats won the state by about 20,000 votes, a narrow victory by a fraction of a percentage point.

To win Wisconsin, Harris' campaign team must “tell the positive story” of her work in the Biden administration and “paint a positive vision for the future,” Johnson said.

At the same time, many participants in the election focused on the question of how Harris compares to Trump.

“I would vote for a sentient avocado and not for the evil orange man,” said Elizabeth Kanne of Madison, who attended the rally with her two children.

Her 19-year-old son, Alan Kanne, leaned toward voting for Harris, but said he was “not enthusiastic about either candidate.”

“I think she has a relatively better character than Donald Trump,” he said. “Politically, I don't find her particularly impressive, but neither does Trump.”