ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Kamala Harris' husband led a Democratic rally in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley over the weekend, all in a fierce opposition to former President Donald Trump.
Vice President Doug Emhoff on Saturday delivered his final and longest speech endorsing his wife's presidential campaign, insisting that the vice president is “just her usual self” despite criticism that she has been double-crossing the issue.
“Guess what we're seeing right now? The coolest version of Kamala Harris ever, right when we need her!” Emhoff told the crowd.
“This is not a honeymoon… this is what a real leader looks like.”
As he laid out several policy proposals for a possible Harris administration, Emhoff also accused President Trump of “hatred” that is “poisoning the blood” of America, a reference to previous comments Trump has made about illegal immigration.
Emhoff said Harris has proposed increasing the tax credit for small business start-up expenses from $5,000 to $50,000. She also plans to oversee the construction of 3 million new homes to lower the cost of living and provide a $25,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers.
Speakers at Saturday's rally included Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, local Rep. Susan Wilde (D-Pennsylvania) and Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk, who introduced Emhoff onstage.
Speaking partly in Spanish to the large Latino audience, Cardona rapped Black Sheep's “The Choice Is Yours” to contrast Harris' record with Trump's, getting the crowd fired up.
“You have one. [candidate] “Harris wants to improve Puerto Rico's education system, she wants to improve Puerto Rico's energy system, the power grid, while the other one is throwing paper towels into a crowd after a hurricane,” Cardona said of Trump. “We haven't forgotten that.”
Rally attendees told The Washington Post they were concerned about a range of issues but looked forward to being able to vote in person on Election Day.
Michelle Bright, 49, a commercial lender near Easton, said women's rights are important to her and supported Harris' campaign, but told The Washington Post, “Something has to be done about the economy, the housing market, immigration.”
Frederick Stevens, 25, of Allentown, said he wanted to hear Emhoff and Cardona speak about education issues, especially as Allentown schools continue to struggle.
“Our schools are performing poorly across the nation. We need federal funding, and to get federal funding we need to improve test scores,” he told The Post.
