Former First Lady Michelle Obama stood before Kamala Harris in Pennsylvania on Saturday night with a speech in which she hyped the vice president and urged people to get out and vote, while criticizing Donald Trump without saying his name once.
There are less than three days to go until Election Day and the race in the state is razor thin, but Harris has seen some signs of momentum heading into the final stretch.
The former first lady argued that in America we “rise more than we fall,” but warned against those who try to tell a different story about the country.
She said that in dark and difficult times, the country needs someone who will.connect with people’s pain and tackle systemic problems at their root, not leaders who stoke our fears and direct our anger at each other.”
Former First Lady Michelle Obama campaigns for Kamala Harris in Norristown, PA on November 2, 2024
“Once you open that gas can, once you wink at hate and make it normal to call someone a bimbo, or low IQ, or human scum, look, you have no control over how fast or far that fire of hatred will spread,” she warned. , referring to some of the names Trump and his allies have called Harris.
“Suddenly someone feels empowered to say that our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico come from an ‘island of trash,’” she continued, pointing to the ex-president’s rally in New York City, where a comedian made a racist joke about the area. .
Obama warned “the destruction is fast and merciless, and no one knows where it will stop.”
She called Trump a fraud, a small man who wanted to make himself feel big, and Kamala’s opponent, but she did not mention him by name.
While the former first lady issued a stark warning to the packed room, she also offered hope for Democrats in the crowd.
She reminisced about her husband’s bid for president, saying the rallies and Harris’ optimism reminded her of his campaign. She said Democrats won that election and could do it again.
Obama spoke about the impact a Kamala Harris presidency would have on future generations.
“Our children deserve to grow up under the extraordinary leadership of Kamala Harris,” she said, and Harris has shown she is the president the country needs “right now.”
She said the vice president would be a president who is committed to the people and will lead with “warmth, joy and grace.”
The former first lady also appealed to her late mother who she lost this year, as she urged people to vote and talk about the country’s progress. She said that as a young woman, her mother was not welcome in department stores.
“But for eight years, she had the best view of America from her room in the White House,” she said as the crowd cheered.
She said her mother’s journey was only possible because of people who fought for it, protested “and yes, voted for it.”
‘That’s how it works in this country. We have to vote,” she said.
Singer Alicia Keys speaks at a rally for Kamala Harris in Norristown, PA on November 2
Obama was joined by Grammy-winning singer Alicia Keys, the latest in a line of high-profile artists to rally behind the vice president and appear in battleground states to rally support in the final days of the campaign.
“I believe our vote is a precious gift,” Keys said.
She accused Republicans of wanting to turn back the clock and take away safety, dignity and voting rights.
Keys said if people are apathetic and don’t vote, they are giving away their power.
“If you don’t vote for Harris, or if you don’t vote at all, you are voting for the chaos and the hate,” she said, telling people to “use your voice, use your voice.”
Alicia Keys greets a woman as she knocks on the door over the PA
Some voters in the state were also quite surprised this weekend when Keys knocked on doors before the meeting on Saturday. People who opened the door were greeted by the singer who posed for photos with voters.
Governor Josh Shapiro, who is from the area, also spoke at the meeting where he talked about his focus on “getting s**t done.” The crowd responded by chanting ‘get s**t done.’
Shapiro praised Harris’ agenda on the economy and protecting reproductive rights.
Saturday’s event was Michelle Obama’s first solo campaign event for the vice president with three days until Election Day.
She appeared with Harris a week ago in Kalamazoo, Michigan for her first event on the campaign trail, where the former first lady delivered a blistering takedown of Trump and an emotional appeal to men to protect the lives and health care of the women she cares about. don’t like to risk it. in the hands of the ex-president.
Obama is a favorite speaker among Democrats, even though she has openly stated how much she hates politics. Her remarks at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago were perhaps the most well-received of the four-day extravaganza.
Her stop in Norristown, Pennsylvania, less than an hour outside of Philadelphia, comes as Democrats are in the final stretch of their Get Out The Vote effort before Election Day.
Democrats must bring out voters from the suburbs, such as Montgomery County, where Norristown is located, to win the crucial battleground state.
Philadelphia’s suburbs have shifted further toward Democrats in a series of recent elections, helping to fuel a win for Biden in the Keystone State in 2020.
Vice President Kamala Harris campaigns on November 2 in Charlotte, NC. She also campaigned in Georgia as Election Day approaches
A line of more than 5,000 people snaked through the high school parking lot and a field as people waited in line for hours to see the former first lady speak at the Norristown Area High School gym on the crisp fall day.
More than 1.7 million people have already voted in the 2024 election in Pennsylvania. Democrats have far outpaced Republicans in returning mail-in ballots in the state, despite GOP efforts to get more supporters voting early overall.
Women in Pennsylvania are also leading the way when it comes to those who have already cast ballots in the Keystone State. According to models from TargetSmart, they represent more than 55 percent of the returned votes.
Katherine West of Horsham, PA came to the meeting and is positive about Harris’ ability to carry the state. She has a number of issues on her mind this election cycle.
“The most important are women’s rights and reproductive rights,” West said. “The second is the economy and then of course Medicare, Social Security.”
Carolyn Prante of Norristown is also optimistic about the state of the race in the state. She and her children already cast their votes by mail. She has been a regular at campaign events in recent election cycles, but this was her first of the 2024 election season.
“I am confident that we will do the right thing,” she said. ‘There is no crystal ball, but I have faith.’
Harris will return to the state on Monday for multiple campaign stops across the state, signaling just how important it is on her path to victory.
The USA Today/Suffolk University poll released Friday in Pennsylvania showed the race tied at 49 percent for Harris and 49 percent for Trump.
The 2024 elections are being described as a gender election with a huge gap between the two candidates.
The Pennsylvania poll also showed this: Trump leads among men by 20 points, while Harris has an 18-point lead among women in the state.
But there are other signs of momentum for the vice president. An Iowa poll by the Des Moines Register released Saturday showed her ahead of Trump by three points in the red state, 47 percent to 44 percent among likely voters.