Kamala Harris on Friday said Donald Trump’s suggestion that Liz Cheney be put in front of a firing squad “disqualified” him from the presidency.
Trump on Thursday conjured an image of Cheney—who along with her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, has endorsed Harris—“with a rifle, standing there, with nine barrels shooting at her.”
After criticizing Trump’s suggestion that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would work on women’s health in his next administration, the vice president called his comments about Cheney “even worse.” She argued that he’s amped up his violent rhetoric about political opponents and slammed the “great detail” he used in fantasizing about the former representative getting shot.
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“This must be disqualifying,” Harris told reporters ahead of an event in Janesville, Wisconsin. “Anyone who wants to be president of the United States who uses that kind of violent rhetoric is clearly disqualified and unqualified to be president.”
Harris said that she hadn’t talked to Cheney since Trump made the comment about her, but added that it diminishes America’s moral authority.
“I have also thought a lot about what this means, in terms of our standing in the world,” she said.
Despite Harris’ concerns, the comment was a gift to her campaign, which told reporters Friday that Trump has steered hordes of voters who made up their minds this week to support Harris.
In the final weeks before Election Day, Harris has played up Trump’s antagonistic language towards his political rivals, highlighting his openness to using the military against left-leaning citizens.
She hit Trump over his “enemies list” at an event at a Wisconsin union hall later in the afternoon, though she did not explicitly speak to the crowd about the Cheney comment. Instead, she focused on her support for unionized workers.
The Trump campaign and the former president himself argued Friday that his critics were taking his rifle comment out of context, and that he was simply making a point about Cheney being a “war hawk.” But Harris’ allies had already pounced.
Former Georgia Lieutenant Gov. Geoff Duncan, another Republican who has endorsed Harris, suggested that Trump’s intent was “reckless” and malicious.
Harris spokesperson Ian Sams told Morning Joe Friday that Trump’s “dangerous, violent rhetoric” would continue to drive Trump-skeptical Republicans to cast their ballots for Harris.
“You have Donald Trump, who’s talking about sending a prominent Republican to the firing squad, and you have Vice President Harris, who’s talking about sending one to her Cabinet,” he said.
