Vice President Kamala Harris is playing up her street cred as a capitalist. Republican Donald Trump is leaning into his raw populism. The two presidential candidates are delivering dueling speeches on Wednesday.
By JOSH BOAK
WASHINGTON Derided by Donald Trump as a “communist,” Kamala Harris is playing up her street cred as a capitalist.
Attacked by Harris as a rich kid who got $400 million from his father on a “silver platter,” Trump is leaning into his raw populism.
The two presidential candidates are set to deliver dueling speeches on Wednesday that reflect how they’re honing their economic messages for voters in battleground states. Both are trying to counter criticism of them while laying out their best case for a public that still worries about the economy’s health.
Vice President Harris is set to speak at the Economic Club of Pittsburgh, where she plans to stress a “pragmatic” philosophy while outlining new policies to boost domestic manufacturing, according to a senior campaign official who sought anonymity to describe the upcoming address. The Democratic nominee’s remarks come after she told a swanky audience of donors in New York City on Sunday that she would cut any “red tape” holding back growth.
Former President Trump is scheduled to deliver a speech in Mint Hill, North Carolina, about how he will protect workers. The Republican nominee made his reputation as a businessman, but he’s recently expressed a willingness to crack down on businesses and has proposed to cap interest rates on credit cards and slap a whopping 200% tariff on tractor-maker John Deere if it moves any jobs to Mexico.
The candidates are each emphasizing the economy at a time when polls show that it is one of the most important issues for voters as they consider who to support. A recent AP-NORC poll found that neither candidate has a decisive edge with the public on the issue.
Both are eager to embrace an image as tax cutters and are accusing the other of backing massive tax hikes on the middle class.
