Harris tells churchgoers to use faith to decide what kind of leader they want

Vice President Kamala Harris urged congregants at a Georgia church Sunday to use their faith to decide who the best leader for the country would be.

“In this moment across our nation, what we do see are some who try to deepen division among us, spread hate, sow fear and cause chaos,” Ms. Harris said at the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest, Georgia.

“There are those who suggest that the measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you beat down, instead of what we know, which is the true measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you lift up,” she said.

She said, “This moment in our nation must be about so much more than partisan politics, it must be about looking inward and being guided by our faith to know what brings hope and what is truly the best expression of our strength.”

She told church attendees that the country is at a “crossroads.”

“Where we go from here is up to us as Americans and as people of faith,” she said.  “And now we ask a question, we face this question — what kind of country do we want to live in. A country of chaos, fear and hate, or a country of freedom, compassion and justice?”

She said the strength of living in a democracy is that the people can determine what kind of country they want to live in.

“So let us answer not just through our words, but through our action and with our votes,” she said.

Ms. Harris stopped by the church on her 60th birthday Sunday. Churchgoers donned pink for breast cancer awareness for the month of October. Ms. Harris wore a pink shirt with a breast cancer awareness pin on her black suit jacket, according to press pool reports.