The vice president will give a speech on Tuesday at the Ellipse, the park near the White House where Donald Trump encouraged supporters to march on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Vice President Kamala Harris has sought to cast Donald J. Trump as unfit to return to the White House.
Vice President Kamala Harris plans to deliver a speech on Tuesday at the Ellipse, the park just south of the White House where former President Donald J. Trump encouraged his supporters to march on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to her campaign.
Ms. Harris will make her closing argument against Mr. Trump, contrasting how their administrations would operate and highlighting the risk she believes he presents to the nation.
On the campaign trail, she has sought to cast Mr. Trump as unfit to return to the White House, drawing attention to critical comments from his former top staff members, including John F. Kelly, and agreeing with assessments that the former president is a “fascist.” At the same time, she has described herself as a unifying candidate who can move the nation beyond the divisions of the Trump era.
The Harris campaign at one point planned to hold the event on the National Mall, according to a Friday application to the National Park Service. The application said a crowd of nearly 8,000 people was expected. But on Monday, an events company that works with Ms. Harris told the park service that her campaign intended to “move our proposed speech to the Ellipse.” The oval-shaped slice of parkland, near the White House South Lawn, is not designated by the National Park Service as part of the National Mall.
On Jan. 6, 2021, Mr. Trump addressed a crowd of supporters at the Ellipse, telling them that “you will never take back our country with weakness” and urging them to “walk down to the Capitol.”
His words helped set in motion hours of violence and chaos as a mob assaulted the Capitol, seeking to disrupt the ceremonial certification of Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s victory in the presidential election.
Erica L. Green contributed reporting.
Nicholas Nehamas is a Times political reporter covering the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris. More about Nicholas Nehamas
Katie Rogers is a White House correspondent. For much of the past decade, she has focused on features about the presidency, the first family, and life in Washington, in addition to covering a range of domestic and foreign policy issues. She is the author of a book on first ladies. More about Katie Rogers
See more on: Kamala Harris, 2024 Elections: News, Polls and Analysis, U.S. Politics
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Source: nytimes.com