In their first joint campaign appearance, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris accused Donald Trump of leaving the U.S. “in tatters,” The Guardian reported.
“This is what happens when we elect a guy who just isn’t up for the job,” Harris said, according to the publication. “Our country ends in tatters and so does our reputation around the world.”
The senator, who was announced as Biden’s running mate on Tuesday, August 11, took aim at Trump’s handling of the coronavirus crisis in her speech, which took place on Wednesday, August 12 at a school in Wilmington, Delaware.
She acknowledged that COVID-19 had impacted almost every country in the world but claimed that Trump’s “failure to take it seriously from the start” is the reason the pandemic hit the U.S. so intensely compared to other advanced nations.
As the Daily Mail reported, Harris also accused Trump of “running the economy into the ground.”
During his turn on the podium, Biden responded to the president’s criticism of his VP pick, according to the news source.
“You all knew it was coming, you could have set your watches to it, Donald Trump has already started his attacks, calling Kamala ‘nasty,’ whining about how she’s ‘mean’ to his appointees,” Biden said. “It’s no surprise because whining is what Donald Trump does best, better than any other president in American history.”
According to the publication, the Democrat also knocked Trump’s response to the coronavirus crisis as he slammed the president for allegedly spending time on the golf course instead of meeting with leaders in Congress to discuss acquiring more COVID-19 relief.
Due to coronavirus concerns, only a small group of reporters was permitted inside the school building for the event, with supporters gathered outside, the publication reported. On his way into the school, Biden said he regretted not being able to greet the group, and as he left, said that the potential for future in-person campaigning would depend on the science.
The Democrats’ event came after Trump labeled Harris “nasty” and “disrespectful” following Biden’s announcement that he was bringing her on his ticket, The Independent noted. According to the news source, Trump launched this attack in reference to Harris’ tenacious questioning of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his Senate confirmation hearings.
As The Inquisitr covered, on Wednesday, former national security adviser Susan Rice — who was reportedly vetted for the position of vice presidential candidate herself — backed Biden’s selection of Harris and said she would make a “tremendous” running mate.