2024 Election Latest: Trump and Harris hit campaign trail as Biden prepares to address the nation
After dropping out of the presidential race, Joe Biden will address the nation on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET. Vice President Kamala Harris has accepted Biden’s endorsement and is building momentum ahead of the DNC in Chicago.
On the campaign trail, Harris will head to the solidly Republican state of Indiana, and Donald Trump is holding his first public campaign rally since Biden’s exit from the 2024 race.
The same day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address Congress against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Gaza.
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Here’s the Latest:
GOP leaders urge colleagues to steer clear of racist and sexist attacks on Harris
Republican leaders are warning party members against using overtly racist and sexist attacks against Vice President Kamala Harris, as they and former President Donald Trump ’s campaign scramble to adjust to the reality of a new Democratic rival less than four months before Election Day.
At a closed-door meeting of House Republicans on Tuesday, National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Richard Hudson, R-N.C., urged lawmakers to stick to criticizing Harris for her role in Biden-Harris administration policies.
“This election will be about policies and not personalities,” House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters after the meeting.
“This is not personal with regard to Kamala Harris,” he added, “and her ethnicity or her gender have nothing to do with this whatsoever.”
Trump expected to turn his full focus on Harris at first rally since Biden’s exit
Donald Trump is holding his first public campaign rally since President Joe Biden dropped out of a 2024 matchup that both major parties had spent months preparing for, leaving the former president to direct his ire toward his likely new opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.
Harris spoke to
a roaring crowd of battleground state voters in Wisconsin yesterday
A roaring crowd of battleground state voters greeted Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday as she opened her public case against Republican former President Donald Trump by declaring November’s election will be “a choice between freedom and chaos.”
Harris arrived in the Milwaukee area having locked up nomination support from Democratic delegates after President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid on Sunday. It was her first campaign rally since she jumped into the race just two days ago with Biden’s endorsement.
The event reflected a vibrancy that had been lacking among Democrats in recent weeks, and Harris was intent on projecting a sense of steady confidence about the November election.
Read more about why the event in Wisconsin matters for Harris’ campaign
Harris campaign sees multiple ways for her to win, ahead of vice president speaking in Indiana
Just three full days since entering the race after President Joe Biden’s departure, Kamala Harris will address the annual gathering of the historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta in Indianapolis.
It’s a moment for Harris, a woman of Black and South Asian descent, to speak to a group already excited by her historic status as the likely Democratic nominee and one that her campaign believes can help to expand its coalition.
Harris, Trump are on the campaign trail as Biden prepares to address the nation
Vice President Kamala Harris goes to the solidly Republican state of Indiana later today, but she plans to speak there to a key Democratic constituency as her campaign sees advantages with women, Black, Latino, Asian and younger voters.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden will address the nation from the Oval Office tonight on his decision to drop his 2024 Democratic reelection bid.
Democrats release more proposals for how they will formally choose a presidential nominee
The Democratic National Committee has released proposed rules that would give candidates until next week to vie for the party’s nomination. But the process will almost certainly end with Vice President Harris replacing President Biden at the top of the party’s ticket.
Candidates will have to qualify by the evening of July 30, according to draft rules released Tuesday.
The party previously announced proposed rules requiring that candidates submit electronic signatures of support from at least 300 delegates to its national convention, no more than 50 of which can be from a single state.
If multiple candidates qualify, it could spark multiple rounds of voting over several days. But, if Harris is the only candidate, voting would be set to begin Aug. 1. The party said last week that it would not hold voting prior to the start of next month and that the process would be completed by Aug. 7.
Biden endorsed Harris when he left the race Sunday and no other major Democrat has announced plans to challenge her. An AP survey of delegates from states across the country found that she had already exceeded the threshold of support needed to secure the nomination.
Families of Israeli hostages gather for a vigil on the National Mall
Families of some of the remaining hostages held a protest vigil Tuesday evening on the National Mall, demanding that Netanyahu come to terms with Hamas and bring home the approximately 120 Israeli hostages remaining in Gaza.
About 150 people wearing yellow shirts that read “Seal the Deal NOW!” chanted “Bring Them Home” and listened to testimonials from relatives and former hostages. The demonstrators applauded when Biden’s name was mentioned, but several criticized Netanyahu — known by his nickname “Bibi” — on the belief that he has been dragging his feet or playing hardball on a proposed cease-fire deal that would return all of the hostages.
“I’m begging Bibi. There’s a deal on the table and you have to take it,” said Aviva Siegel, 63, who spent 51 days in captivity and whose husband Keith remains a hostage. “I want Bibi to look in my eyes and tell me one thing: that Keith is coming home.”