By Axios | Created at 2024-09-29 14:44:06 | Updated at 2024-09-30 05:21:43
14 hours ago
Former President Trump, in a self-described "dark speech," told a rally in Wisconsin yesterday that his opponent, Vice President Harris, is "mentally impaired" and "mentally disabled."
- "Joe Biden became mentally impaired," Trump said during a riff about immigration. "Kamala [mispronounces name] was born that way. [Laughter.] She was born that way. And if you think about it, only a mentally disabled person could have allowed this to happen to our country." (Video)
Why it matters: Even for Trump, it was weird, nasty and nonsensical — when he needed to be swaying "national security moms" and other undecideds, 38 days out from Election Day.
- Trump told the rally in Prairie du Chien (prairie of the dog): "This is a dark speech."
The big picture: Presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin — whose latest bestseller is "The Leadership Journey: How Four Kids Became President" — told me, "While former President Trump's latest outrageous claim about Vice President Harris does seem beyond the pale even for him, and even in our country's long history of political invective, what is even more disturbing is that it will now be taken as a matter of course, demonstrating we've become inured to his degrading language."
- "Think back to 2015," she added, "in the very early days of his first campaign when he said John McCain was not a war hero because he was captured. The N.Y. Post predicted that his campaign would implode. The front-page headline declared: 'Trump is toast ... DON VOYAGE!"
The other side: The Harris campaign, highlighting Trump's comment that he was giving a "dark speech," said he "gave a gloomy review of his angry, rambling diatribe."
Other comments by Trump during the hour-plus remarks at the rally, which was moved inside at the last minute because of security concerns:
- He clarified that in addition to his plans to prosecute any 2024 election cheaters if he wins, "and if we can, we'll go back to the last one [2020], too, if we're allowed. But we're gonna prosecute people." (Video)
- There's no evidence of widespread fraud during the 2020 election. And Trump continues to claim that the only way he'll lose in November is if Democrats cheat.
- On Harris and the border: "She's letting in people who are going to walk into your house, break into your door and they'll do anything they want, they'll do anything they want. These people are animals. ... These are stone-cold killers. ... It's also the fact that they're taking all of our Black population's jobs and our Hispanic population's jobs." (Video ... Fact check)
- On his debate performance: "All the stupid people — the anchors, back there — no, they say: "He fell into a trap' — her trap. She can't set a mental trap." (Video)
