Harris and Trump begin final sprint amid escalating verbal spat

Photo: Roberto Schmidt Agence France-Presse A Kamala Harris campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin, on Wednesday

Kamil Krzaczynski – Agence France-Presse and Sébastien Blanc – Agence France-Presse in Milwaukee and Washington respectively

Published and updated on November 1

• United States

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are continuing their intense duel for the White House, marked Friday by fresh accusations of verbal violence from the former president.

As both are competing for voters who are still undecided after a race that is perfectly divided, according to the polls, the Republican candidate has sparked a new controversy by suggesting that one of his fiercest opponents, Liz Cheney, be placed in front of guns pointed at her.

His Democratic rival, who has allied herself with this former Republican congresswoman, was quick to estimate that this verbal violence “disqualified” Donald Trump.

As more than 68 million Americans have already submitted their early ballots, one controversy is now chasing another in an atmosphere of growing tension as November 5 approaches. The vice-president and the former president are also tirelessly crisscrossing key states.

The Democrat will receive the support of the famous rapper Cardi B in Milwaukee, the largest city in Wisconsin, after having recently obtained the support of stars such as Beyoncé, Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer Lopez and LeBron James.

The Republican will be in the same city on Friday after a last-minute stopover in Dearborn, Michigan, the largest American city with a population that is predominantly of Arab origin.

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Objective: to court this electorate, part of which is turning away from the Democrats because of the Biden-Harris administration's support for the war waged by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon. Donald Trump “now understands more than ever […] our value in winning crucial states like Michigan, Arizona or Pennsylvania,” Bishara Bahbah, president of the Association of Arab Americans for Trump, told AFP.

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Disunited States

Despite dozens of partisan rallies and podcast and TV appearances, nothing, so far, has moved the needle in a politically divided America.

A few thousand voters in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Arizona hold the keys to an extraordinary election marked in particular by the resounding arrival in July of the vice-president in the campaign, after the withdrawal of President Joe Biden, and by two assassination attempts against Donald Trump.

Wisconsin is a perfect example. The state on Lake Michigan swung Republican in 2016 and then to Joe Biden in 2020, by less than a percentage point each time.

While the 2024 election could prove just as close, with a delay of hours (or even days) before a result is known, the Republican's entourage has already begun to fuel the idea that voting irregularities were committed.

“If we can keep cheating down, we'll have a huge victory,” Donald Trump said again on Thursday night.

Threats and disinformation

During the same discussion, he accused Liz Cheney, his political bête noire, of being a “radical warmonger.”

“Let's put her with a gun in her hand and nine barrels of guns shooting at her. Let's see what she thinks.” You know, with guns pointed at her,” Donald Trump said, evoking the image of a firing squad.

Donald Trump’s most famous Republican opponent, the daughter of George W. Bush’s former vice president, responded on X: “We cannot trust our country and our freedom to a mean, vindictive, cruel, unstable man who intends to be a tyrant.”

Separately, authorities in Georgia, a key southern state, warned Friday about a fake video showing a Haitian immigrant claiming to have been able to vote multiple times.

The viral 20-second clip is believed to be part of a Russian disinformation campaign, experts say.