Combination picture of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and former U.S. President Donald Trump. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris zeroed in on former President Donald Trump’s comments suggesting the U.S. military could be used to deal with “the enemy from within” as the two presidential nominees took the fight for battleground Pennsylvania to opposite ends of the State on Monday (October 14, 2024).

Ms. Harris, at her rally in northwestern Pennsylvania, called Mr. Trump a serious threat to American democracy who is “out for unchecked power.”

“He considers anyone who doesn’t support him or who will not bend to his will an enemy of our country,” Ms. Harris said after playing a clip of the comment on the jumbo screen at her rally at an Erie arena. “This is among the reasons I believe so strongly that a second Trump term would be a huge risk for America, and dangerous.”

Democrat Harris and Republican Trump have been become fixtures in the country’s largest 2024 battleground State. It was Ms. Harris’ 10th visit to Pennsylvania this campaign season, and Mr. Trump’s Monday town hall in suburban Philadelphia came after visits last week to Scranton and Reading.

Ms. Harris was highlighting what she says are examples of Mr. Trump’s increasingly “unstable and unhinged” behaviour. It’s part of her effort to win over a small universe of undecided voters and tear away even a small slice of traditionally Republican voters in the fight for Pennsylvania and six other closely contested States that are expected to determine who wins next month’s election.

She argued that Mr. Trump’s comments in a Fox News “Sunday Morning Futures” interview are the latest example of threatening rhetoric from the former president that should concern Americans about what a potential second Mr. Trump term could look like.

Mr. Trump made the comment in response to a question about “outside agitators” potentially disrupting Election Day, pivoting to what he said is a foe closer to home.

“I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within,” Mr. Trump said. He added: “We have some very bad people. We have some sick people, radical left lunatics. And I think they’re the big — and it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military, because they can’t let that happen.”

Mr. Trump’s running mate, J.D. Vance, defended Mr. Trump’s comments during a campaign stop in Minneapolis earlier Monday.

“Is it a justifiable use of those assets if they’re rioting and looting and burning cities down to the ground? Of course it is. Right?” Mr. Vance told reporters. “I think the question is, is it a justifiable use of assets, depends on what’s actually happening.”