Harris Rallies Wisconsin Democrats in a 2024 Campaign Pivot

Frederica Freyberg:
Joe Biden 2024 is out and Democrats are now chanting Kamala Harris’s name. Taking a page from the Republicans unifying around Trump last week, the Democratic Party this week quickly united behind Harris and secured the necessary delegate pledges to all but guarantee her nomination. That came mere days after Biden announced he was no longer planning to run. Kamala Harris already had a planned visit to Milwaukee this week, but as the vice presidential candidate. Instead, as Murv Seymour reports, the event became her first official campaign stop as candidate for president.

Ben Wikler:
Hello Wisconsin! [crowd cheering] Do we have Milwaukee in the house today?

Julie Landry:
Oh, the energy is high.

Murv Seymour:
A special summertime pep rally.

Julie Landry:
I think her saying that she’s going to run has re-energized the party.

Ben Wikler:
This is the land of Kamala Harris.

Murv Seymour:
It’s all playing center court inside the Bulldogs gymnasium at West Allis Central High School.

Jill Underly:
She’s ready to prosecute the case against Donald Trump.

Murv Seymour:
Surrounded by tight Secret Service protection, this rally has presidential implications.

Sarah Godlewski:
And we are united around Kamala.

Murv Seymour:
And people in the stands like Julie Landry know it.

Julie Landry:
She brings experience. She brings excellence. She brings commitment. She brings dedication. She brings intelligence. She brings energy. She brings hope.

Paul McCreary:
She can continue the work that Biden’s done so far in the past four years, continue to build on the economy that he’s kind of set a good baseline for and really take us to new places.

Murv Seymour:
Many tell me they’ve come to see history in the making as Vice President Kamala Harris declares game on in her sudden run for the White House.

Andrea O’Brien:
For me, at my age, to see a woman on that podium running for president means everything to me.

Murv Seymour:
Flanked between the state and American flags, days since the Republican National Convention was held less than eight miles away.

Sarah Godlewski:
So are you with me to roll up your sleeves and elect Kamala Harris?

Murv Seymour:
Candidate Harris comes to this suburban Milwaukee community with the support of some union groups, the Democratic National Party and Wisconsin Democrats.

Josh Kaul:
I have a simple question for you. Are you ready to elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States?

Murv Seymour:
Some of the state’s top liberals welcome her with their endorsements, and they want Wisconsinites and the nation to do the same.

Tammy Baldwin:
There’s a reason that she’s kicking things off right here in Wisconsin, because we are the battleground state.

Tony Evers:
Yesterday, I joined my favorite Midwestern governors, J.B. Pritzker, Gretchen Whitmer and Tim Walz to announce that I am all in on Kamala Harris.

Murv Seymour:
In this, the first campaign stop of her 2024 presidential bid, candidate Harris gets an energized welcome from an enthused crowd of about 3,000 supporters.

[crowd cheering]

Kamala Harris:
Thank you all. Thank you.

Murv Seymour:
Like the speakers before, Harris thanks Joe Biden, who withdrew from reelection 48 hours before this event.

Kamala Harris:
Joe’s legacy of accomplishment over his entire career and over the past three and a half years is unmatched in modern history.

Murv Seymour:
With a hint of her campaign slogan, Harris makes her case against former president and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Kamala Harris:
Donald Trump intends to cut Social Security and Medicare. [crowd boos] He intends to give tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations and make working families foot the bill. [crowd boos] They intend to end the Affordable Care Act. [crowd boos]

Murv Seymour:
With childhood ties in nearby Madison, Vice President Harris tells this crowd she knows the path to the presidency cuts through West Allis and all of Wisconsin.

Kamala Harris:
So Wisconsin, today I ask you, are you ready to get to work? [crowd cheers] Do we believe in freedom? [crowd cheers] Do we believe in opportunity? [crowd cheers] Do we believe in the promise of America? [crowd cheers] And are we ready to fight for it? [crowd cheers] And when we fight, we win.

Murv Seymour:
As Harris wraps up her visit just outside the gymnasium, a huge Trump flag flies high as a handful of supporters lined the streets as a reminder that it’s now Team Trump versus Team Harris. Reporting for “Here & Now,” I’m Murv Seymour.