Harris does CNN town hall in lieu of Trump debate

Kamala Harris takes questions at CNN town hall

Kamala Harris takes questions at a CNN town hall in suburban Philadelphia

(Image credit: Charly Triballeau / AFP via Getty Images)

published 24 October 2024

What happened

Vice President Kamala Harris took questions from undecided voters in suburban Philadelphia on Wednesday, in a CNN town hall scheduled to replace a second debate Donald Trump rejected. Harris explicitly called Trump a "fascist" and said voters should heed the "911 call to the American people" from retired Gen. John Kelly and a growing number of other top Trump administration officials "who know him best" and are sharing their "legitimate fear, based on Donald Trump's words and actions, that he will not obey an oath to support and defend the Constitution" in an uninhibited second term.

Who said what

Harris also talked about her faith and reiterated her plans to lower housing and grocery costs and have Medicare cover home elderly care, among other ways she "will not be a continuation of the Biden administration." But the warnings from former Trump allies about his fascist and dictatorial proclivities "are factoring heavily into Harris' closing message," The Washington Post said. Her campaign "wanted voters to hear her strongest case" about the dangers of a guardrail-free Trump restoration "before they flipped the channel back to 'Survivor,'" The New York Times said, and they "got their wish."

CNN's undecided voters asked Harris "often pointed questions," and "she didn't always answer them directly," Politico said. Asked if she believes Trump is antisemitic, for example, Harris said, "I believe Donald Trump is a danger to the well-being and security of the United States of America," and Americans don't need a president "comparing oneself, in a clearly admiring way, to Hitler."

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"Trump, predictably, took the bait," Adam Wren said at Politico, "lashing out" at Kelly on social media, calling the four-star general a mendacious "LOWLIFE and a bad general" who was both "tough and dumb." Trump has also frequently called Harris a fascist — along with a communist, dumb, lazy and other slurs — but "nobody is wringing their hands about the insult" because "nobody actually believes Harris is a fascist," Jonathan Chait said at New York.

What next?

While Trump has "largely stuck to conservative safe spaces and friendly podcast interviews," Harris has "sat for a series of big-audience interviews with independent and — last week on Fox News — combative news outlets," the Times said. "Whether voters give her credit for her willingness to be questioned remains to be seen."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.