Joe Biden and Kamala Harris stepped up their criticism of President Donald Trump on Thursday, saying he’s rooting for violence amid unrest in Wisconsin and blasting him for a lack of leadership on the coronavirus pandemic, hours before Trump’s planned address on the final night of the Republican National Convention.
“He views this as a political benefit,” Democratic presidential nominee Mr. Biden said on MSNBC about protests in Wisconsin after police shot a Black man earlier this week. “He’s rooting for more violence, not less. And it’s clear about that.”
The two had been largely silent during the first three days of the GOP convention, during which Republicans have tried to link them to protesters, warning a Biden presidency would make America less safe and erroneously saying he wants to defund the police.
Meanwhile, the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, has once again sparked protests against racial injustice and police brutality. Days later, a 17-year-old white gunman was arrested in connection with the shooting deaths of two protesters in clashes between vigilante militias and protesters.
White House adviser Kellyanne Conway suggested on “Fox & Friends” that the Wisconsin unrest could help Trump’s reelection chances.
“The more chaos and anarchy and vandalism and violence reigns,” Conway said, “the better it is for the very clear choice on who’s best on public safety and law and order.”
Mr. Biden does not support defunding the police but has advocated for overhauling U.S. police practices after years of high-profile killings of Black Americans by officers. Ms. Harris, meanwhile, sponsored a bill in Congress to ban certain police practices like chokeholds and no-knock warrants and would create a national registry for police misconduct, among other things.
In Washington Thursday, Ms. Harris offered her support for protesters.
“It’s no wonder people are taking to the streets - and I support them,” she said. “Make no mistake- We will not let these vigilantes and extremists derail the path to justice.”
“Let me be clear- The violence must stop - whether in Minneapolis, Portland or Kenosha,” Mr. Pence said, after warning people they would not be safe in Mr. Biden’s America.
Meanwhile Mr. Biden, who has largely limited travel to near his home in Wilmington, Delaware, during the pandemic said he’d consider traveling to Kenosha himself.
“If I were president I’d be going,” Mr. Biden said. “But it’s hard to tell now what the circumstance on the ground is.”
Should he make the trip, Mr. Biden said, he would attempt to “pull together the Black community as well as the white community and sit down and talk about how we get through this.”
Of Mr. Trump, he said- “This is his America now. And, if you want to end where we are now, we’ve got to end his tenure as president.”
It’s typical for a vice presidential running mate to serve as the primary critic of the opponent, and Ms. Harris’s speech demonstrated how she’ll handle that role. A former prosecutor, her standout moments that have energized Democrats during the Trump presidency have come during her pointed questioning of his administration nominees. Now, she’s likely to turn that fire on Mr. Trump.
“Before this virus hit, Trump made our country vulnerable,” she said. “After it struck, he failed to do what was necessary. As it continues he’s making it worse everyday.”
