In a snarky press release, Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign criticized former President Donald Trump following his "quite weird" Fox News appearance.
On Thursday, the campaign released a press release titled “Statement on a 78-Year-Old Criminal’s Fox News Appearance" in response to Trump's Thursday appearance on Fox and Friends, following President Biden's Wednesday speech in which he officially passed the torch to VP Kamala Harris.
You can watch Biden's full speech below:
FULL SPEECH: President Joe Biden gives address after dropping out of 2024 electionwww.youtube.com
Clips of the appearance showed Trump declaring "we don't need the votes."
He also came out in support of a jail sentence for anyone who desecrates the American flag.
So, shortly after the appearance, Kenneth P. Vogel, an investigative reporter based in the Washington bureau of The New York Times, shared the Harris campaign's response to Trump's rambling interview, calling it a "shade alert."
The press release, titled “Statement on a 78-Year-Old Criminal’s Fox News Appearance," reads:
"After watching Fox News this morning we only have one question, is Donald Trump ok?”
It added the following "takeaways Trump gave the American people":
"Trump praised his Project 2025. Trump is flustered and lashing out. When Trump wasn't lying, he was making threats."
"Abortion bans are good, mail-in voting is bad. Praised dictators because he wants to be one. Trump is clearly worried he made the wrong VP pick in J.D. Vance."
"Trump is old and quite weird? This guy shouldn't be president ever again. If anyone wants an alternative, Kamala Harris is offering one."
You can see the press release below.
Harris for President
Notably, Harris' statements flip convicted felon Trump's prior attacks on the 81-year-old Biden's age and mental acuity on their head; now that Biden has dropped out, Trump is the oldest presidential nominee in history and is vulnerable to the same criticisms he's projected for years.
They also, as Harris did to Trump's running mate J.D. Vance last week, link Trump to Project 2025, a set of conservative and right-wing policy proposals from the Heritage Foundation aimed at restructuring the United States federal government and consolidating executive power if the Republican nominee wins the 2024 presidential election.
It is a comprehensive document detailing what a future Trump presidency would entail, encompassing not just policy proposals on immigration, education, and the economy, but also a vision of the America that conservatives aim to create in the next Republican administration, whether led by Trump or another standard bearer.
This document serves as a meticulous blueprint for implementing this vision, providing recommendations for key White House staff, cabinet positions, Congress, federal agencies, commissions, and boards. It also outlines a vetting process to ensure the appointment and hiring of individuals aligned with this vision at every level of government.
Many appreciated the Harris campaign's brutal response.
Harris has also taken aim at Trump for backing out of future debates, announcing in a statement via spokesperson Steven Cheung that the "continued political chaos surrounding Crooked Joe Biden and the Democrat Party" signal that "general election debate details cannot be finalized until Democrats formally decide on their nominee."
Trump had previously claimed he "would debate “ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE" but has reneged on that pledge now that Biden has dropped out of the race. Cheung himself said "it would be inappropriate to schedule things with Harris because Democrats very well could still change their minds."
In response, Harris—who just secured former President Barack Obama's endorsement—accused Trump of "backpedaling":
“I have agreed to the previously agreed upon Sept. 10 debate. He agreed to that previously. Now, here he is backpedaling, and I’m ready, and I think the voters deserve to see the split screen that exists in this race on a debate stage, and so I’m ready. Let’s go.”
Since launching her campaign for President on Sunday, Harris raised $81 million in the first 24 hours, a presidential fundraising record. It was also reported that she raised more than $126 million in the first three days of her campaign with millions more flowing in every day.