Former President Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) campaigned together for the first time as part of the newly formed Republican presidential field in Michigan on Saturday, with Trump’s running mate quickly criticizing Vice President Harris.
“This has been an incredible week, and I’m thrilled that President Trump asked me to campaign as his running mate. But I have some bad news for you,” Vance told supporters at a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, about a minute into his speech. “My vice president, Kamala Harris, doesn’t like me.
“Kamala Harris is trying to say I have no loyalty to this country,” the Ohio Republican continued. “Well, I don’t know Kamala. I served in the United States Marines and I started a business. What the hell have I done besides get a check?”
Days after Trump named Vance as his running mate during the Republican National Convention, Harris denounced him before supporters in North Carolina, offering an early preview of how the two running mates will plan to play off each other.
“It’s a compelling story,” Harris said of Vance’s personal story, “and it’s not the full story.”
“What’s really significant, frankly, is that he didn’t talk on that stage. He didn’t talk about Project 2025, which is the 900-page blueprint for a second term of the Trump Administration. The reason he didn’t talk about it is because their plan is extreme and they’re divisive,” she explained at the rally.
The Grand Rapids rally marked the first time Republicans saw the two men campaign together since Vance was formally selected as Trump’s running mate.
The rally came days after the Republican National Convention ended in Milwaukee and exactly one week after Trump was shot in the ear during an assassination attempt while campaigning in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Trump wore a small, flesh-colored bandage over his ear at the Michigan rally — a contrast to the larger white one he wore at the Republican National Convention earlier this week. He spoke about the shooting and thanked Americans for their support after the attack, describing it later in his speech as “a shot taken for democracy.”
He also offered rare praise to the press, saying it covered the event “fairly.” He also said journalists “got it right” by describing the Republican National Convention and its unified atmosphere as “a big, beautiful, four-day love fest.”
The former president also downplayed the Democrats’ predicament over Biden and the lingering questions surrounding their presidential nominee, saying, “Number one, they have no idea who their candidate is. And neither do we. And that’s the problem.”
Biden and his team remain adamant that they will remain in the race despite some Democrats calling for him to drop out. Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who are both up for reelection, were among the leading Democrats to call on Biden to drop out.
At the rally, Trump suggested he would like to run against Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (Democrat), who has emerged as a possible candidate to succeed Biden, but Whitmer denied the idea.
Like Vance, Trump has also slammed Biden and Harris, who has become an increasingly prominent figure in the debate over his candidacy, calling her “laughing Kamala,” “crazy” and a “knockout.” Trump has also called his better-known opponent, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), “as dumb as a bedbug.”
Much of Trump’s speech touched on familiar themes like inflation and immigration, touched on topics like electric cars and criticized Sean Fain, president of the United Auto Workers. The former president also reiterated his rejection of Project 2025, calling it “extreme.”
Biden campaign spokesman Amar Moosa issued a statement after Trump’s rally slamming the event.
“We were promised there would be a new Donald Trump who would unite the country. But what we saw tonight was the same Donald that the American people continue to reject time and time again. He’s spreading the same lies, waging the same campaign of revenge and retaliation, promoting the same failed policies, and, as always, focusing only on himself,” he said. “The only unity we saw today was between Donald Trump and J.D. Vance and their Project 2025 agenda.”
Michigan is one of a handful of key battleground states that could determine the presidential election this fall, and a Michigan poll compiled by Decision Desk HQ has Trump leading Biden 45 percent to 44 percent.
Vance is scheduled to hold rallies in Ohio and Virginia on Monday.
