Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Seattle on Saturday to raise money for what she described to supporters as a high-stakes re-election bid.
In two speeches to supporters — one at a West Seattle home and the second at the Westin downtown — Harris highlighted what she described as an “extreme” contrast between her running mate , President Joe Biden, and former President Donald Trump when it comes to issues like health care.
While she touched on a range of high-profile issues in her remarks, including abortion, the Affordable Care Act and the economy, she did not mention Trump’s conviction this week in the case of hush money surrounding the payment of adult film star Stormy Daniels. Harris’ second speech was interrupted twice by protesters against the war in Gaza.
The vice president landed at Boeing Field around 3:30 p.m., where she was greeted by local officials before heading to her first stop at a West Seattle home on Genesee Hill.
Speaking to a group inside, Harris said the stakes in the November election were high and momentum was on the Biden campaign’s side.
“In this re-election, listen guys, we’re going to win,” Harris said. “We may have some punches when this is over, but we will win and our country is worth fighting for.”
Harris said Biden would veto any national abortion ban that Congress might pass and touted the administration’s work to cap insulin costs for seniors.
Harris spoke at a second fundraiser at the Westin in downtown Seattle between approximately 5:40 p.m. and 6 p.m., repeating many of the same talking points from her previous speech. But she also highlighted the Biden administration’s work on the economy, citing “historic” low employment and new manufacturing jobs.
Harris said that many things in the world and the country are “complex and nuanced,” but that the November election is “binary.”
“On the one hand, you have a former president who openly praises dictators and said he would be a dictator from day one, who basically said he would use the Justice Department as a weapon against his enemies, his political enemies, who has openly spoken about how proud he is of what he did to undo the protections of Roe V. Wade,” she said.
“On the other side,” she continued, “you have Joe Biden and our administration, who have done transformative work that the history books, and even the pundits right now, will show has been historic in terms of what we’ve done to strengthen the economy. and grow the American economy and invest in our nation’s future.
His remarks at the Westin were twice interrupted by protesters against the war in Gaza.
The first, in a red shirt, stood up and shouted, “Children are being burned in Rafah,” then was escorted out of the room.
“I appreciate your right to express what is truly a concern. …We are working to end this war as quickly as possible,” she said.
Shortly after, a second protester stood up and said: “Vice President, when will you stop sending weapons to Israel?
“Thank you, I’m talking now,” Harris said as the second protester was escorted out.
Those who disrupted Harris’ speech — later identified as Kevin Bocek and Arin Flaster of Jewish Voice for Peace Seattle — said after the event that they hoped to express outrage and sadness over Israel’s ongoing war and Hamas and the thousands of Palestinian deaths.
“It was important to cause civil disruption to send the message to the vice president and everyone present that weapons and military aid must stop being sent to Israel,” Bocek said.
After the two men were escorted from the room, the officers handcuffed them outside. They were released after about 15 minutes, Flaster said.
Harris last visited Seattle in August, when she spoke at an event on the Biden administration’s climate and clean energy efforts and to mark the anniversary of the signing of the law on reducing inflation.