Obama urges Black men to show Harris during his campaign in critical Pennsylvania

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Former president Barack Obama sharply criticized his successor in the White House Donald Trump and urged Black men to show up Kamala Harris opening a tour of a swing state in exchange for the Democratic ticket.

At a campaign field office to thank volunteers on Thursday, Obama said he wanted to “tell some truths” after hearing reports that there was less enthusiasm for Harris than for his own candidacy and that some black men had thought that to sit outside the elections.

“Part of it makes me think – and I’m speaking directly to men – part of me thinks that, well, you just don’t feel the idea of ​​a woman being president and you come up with other alternatives and for other reasons,” Obama said.

The former president said Trump’s tendency to put people down just isn’t real strength.

“Do you consider sitting down or supporting someone who has slandered you in the past because you’re thinking that it’s an indication of strength and that is what being a person is all about? Demeaning women? This is unacceptable,” Obama said.

Trump responded Friday in a post on his social media, ignoring Obama’s prolonged condemnation of him, suggesting that the previous president could secretly gain his support, and once more insulting Harris.

“Obama admits he shows a complete lack of enthusiasm for Kamala, especially for Black Men,” he wrote. “I think Obama will vote for me because he doesn’t like the fact that Kamala has an extremely low IQ!”

Obama has made battleground Pennsylvania the primary stop of his campaign with lower than 4 weeks until Election Day, and voting has already begun. Speaking at a rally on the University of Pittsburgh, he portrayed Trump as out of touch with reality moderately than someone determined to lead the country into change, calling him a “bumbling” billionaire “who hasn’t stopped complaining about his problems since he came down his golden staircase.” mobile nine years ago.

He said Harris is “a leader who has spent her life fighting on behalf of people who need a voice and a chance” and declared: “Kamala is as prepared for this job as any presidential candidate.”

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Obama, out of power for eight years, is certainly one of the Democratic Party’s most reliable surrogates able to excite voters. Until he was elected president in 2020, Joe Biden also served in that role for Democrats, but this 12 months, since he ended his re-election campaign and allowed Harris to win the seat, he has yet to hit the trail.

Obama, who was greeted enthusiastically by the group, described Trump’s all-caps social media posts and his “rants and ravings about crazy conspiracy theories.” Two-hour speeches, word salad, just… it’s like Fidel Castro. Just go on and on. Constantly trying to sell you things. Who does this?”

Obama listed a number of the products Trump tried to sell during his third White House campaign, including Gold sneakers for $399AND A $100,000 watch and him God Bless the USA Bible for $59.99.

“I want you to buy the word of God: Donald Trump edition. “I have his name right next to Matthew and Luke,” Obama said with amusing. -You couldn’t make this up.

The emergence of Obama, the nation’s first black president, underscores the historic nature of Harris’s political profession. Harris, the primary woman, Black or person of South Asian descent to change into vp, might be the primary woman to change into president if elected next month.

Obama’s old campaign slogan, “Yes, We Can,” was even reworked for the event, with “Yes, She Can” displayed on a screen above the group.

Both Harris and Trump are competing for support from Black Americans. AND from the newest survey conducted by the AP-NORC Public Affairs Research Center found that about 7 in 10 black voters have a somewhat or very favorable view of Harris, with little difference between black female and male voters in their perceptions of the Democratic candidate.

The poll found that black voters’ views of Trump were overwhelmingly negative, but the previous president believed his message on the economy, immigration and traditional values ​​could penetrate Democrats’ traditional base of support amongst black voters, especially younger ones. black men.

Obama acknowledged that the previous couple of years because the pandemic have been difficult for Americans due to high prices and other burdens on working families.

“I understand why people want to shake things up. I mean, I’m a person who hopes to change. So I understand that people feel frustrated and they feel like we can do better,” Obama said. “I can’t understand why anyone would think Donald Trump would shake things up in a way that’s good for you, Pennsylvania.”

He mocked Trump’s response during the controversy that he would replace Obama’s signature health care bill, the Affordable Care Act, with “plan concepts” and his running mate J.D. Vance’s recent remark that Trump was working to “save” the law.

“Donald Trump has spent his entire presidency trying to tear it down. And by the best way, he couldn’t even do this well.

Obama also addressed latest court filing on federal election interference against Trump, who claimed that Trump told an adviser, “So what?” after being told that his vp, Mike Pence, had been taken to a protected location after a violent mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

“If Donald Trump doesn’t care that a mob might attack his vice president, do you think he cares about you?” he asked.

Glenda Ellison, a 71-year-old retired teacher and Democrat from Pittsburgh, said she was “a little nervous” concerning the election but “praying it goes in our favor.”

Ellison said she sees Obama as a celebration spokesman with a big following who can hopefully sway voters who’re hesitant to vote for Harris.

“As a former president and also a black president, I think this is something that can relate to the African-American community because our black president is actually supporting another black candidate,” said Ellison, who’s black.

Obama was certainly one of the important thing Democrats involved in a behind-the-scenes effort to encourage Biden, his former vp, to drop out of the 2024 race.

Obama and Harris have been friends for twenty years, ever since he ran for the Senate in Illinois. She campaigned for him when he ran for president in 2008.

Pennsylvania is a state that Obama won in his 2008 and 2012 presidential races, but Trump won in 2016. Biden managed to achieve this in 2020, and it looks just like the state might be one of the vital closely contested in this 12 months’s race .

Trump was in the eastern a part of the state on Wednesday to attend rallies in Scranton and Reading. Over the weekend, after returning to Butler, he also campaigned in western Pennsylvania, where he was shot after surviving an assassination attempt in July.

Obama’s appearance on the University of Pittsburgh was also intended to boost the re-election campaign of Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, who’s opposed by Trump-backed Republican David McCormick.