While embattled President Biden spent the weekend in isolation with COVID-19, Vice President Kamala Harris held a $2 million campaign fundraiser Saturday in the largely gay community of Provincetown, Massachusetts.
“We are going to win,” Ms. Harris told an estimated 1,000 supporters to applause. “It’s not going to be easy. It takes believing in something and then going for it.”
More than three dozen congressional Democrats have called on the 81-year-old Mr. Biden to quit the race, concerned that he can’t defeat former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee.
Some Democrats view Ms. Harris as the best alternative to Mr. Biden in November, while others are calling for an open nominating convention in Chicago next month in an apparent effort to bypass the vice president. She didn’t address the situation directly at the fundraiser but praised Mr. Biden’s leadership.
“I’m testifying as a first-hand witness,” Ms. Harris said, raising her hands in the air. “With every decision [Mr. Biden] makes in the Oval Office, I’m telling you he thinks about how it will impact everyday working Americans.”
She also blasted Mr. Trump’s message of unity at the Republican National Convention, which concluded Thursday.
“If you claim to stand for unity, then you need to know it’s more than just a word,” she said. “Let me be clear, if Donald Trump wins in November, he will once again implement policies that target the LGBTQ community. Just look at what he did in his first term in office.”
Mr. Trump, speaking at a campaign rally Saturday in Grand Rapids, Michigan, said Democratic Party bosses are “desperately” trying to force Mr. Biden off the ballot, a move he called un-democratic.
He asked supporters whether they would prefer that he face Mr. Biden or Ms. Harris in November; the crowd’s level of booing sounded stronger for Mr. Biden.
“When you vote for Biden, you’re probably voting indirectly for Harris. It’s all common sense,” Mr. Trump.
Ms. Harris also went after Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, the GOP’s vice presidential nominee, saying that he will “undoubtedly be a rubber stamp” for Mr. Trump’s “extremist anti-LGBTQ agenda.”
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also attended the fundraiser.
Mr. Biden is self-isolating at his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, after testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday. He said he is looking forward to returning to the campaign trail in the coming week, rejecting for now the calls to step aside.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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