Former President Donald Trump faced widespread ridicule after downplaying Vice President Kamala Harris's recent gains in the polls, following her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.
Trump shared his live reactions to Harris's speech on Truth Social and then called into Fox News shortly after the Vice President finished speaking. Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum noted that Harris has seen a rise in the polls since becoming the Democratic nominee, especially among women, Black voters, and young voters.
She asked:
"There's been a huge appeal and momentum for women voters. [Harris] is trying to build the youth vote, the Hispanic vote, the Black vote back in her direction. Polls show that she is having some success in that at this point."
"What are you going to do, what’s your strategy to rebuild the momentum that you had with those voters?”
A noticeably frustrated Trump ranted:
“No, she’s not having success. I’m having success. I’m doing great with the Hispanic voters. I’m doing great with Black men. I’m doing great with women because women want safety."
You can hear his reaction in the video below.
But Trump is wrong, not to mention in denial.
Harris has now secured her largest polling lead over Trump, according to a leading polling tracker. FiveThirtyEight’s tracker, which aggregates and adjusts national and state poll results based on reliability, shows Harris leading Trump by an average of 3.6 points nationally, with 47.2 percent to Trump’s 43.6 percent.
This is Harris' most significant advantage in the tracker since President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid and endorsed her to be his successor.
Additionally, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report moved three key battleground races in Harris's favor last week. Polling from the organization also showed Harris leading Trump in five out of seven battleground states that are likely to determine November's election.
Trump was mocked almost immediately.
In her speech, Harris called on the nation to shed Trump's abrasive and off-the-cuff style, saying that each American now "has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past" by voting for her in November.
Harris took direct aim at Trump for the threats he poses to American democracy, asking the audience to “consider what he intends to do if we give him power again.” She cautioned Trump would free “violent extremists” who participated in the insurrection of January 6, 2021.
Notably, she cited Trump's willingness to deploy “active duty military against our own citizens" by invoking the Insurrection Act, imploring her listeners to "consider the power he will have especially after the United States Supreme Court ruled he will be immune from prosecution," the possibility of "Trump with no guardrails.”