As the 2024 presidential election enters its final stretch, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump held dueling campaign events in Texas, a Republican stronghold, on Friday, focusing on their core messages.
Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, was in Houston to discuss abortion rights at a campaign rally, where superstar singer Beyoncé, a Houston native, took the stage.
Meanwhile, the former president held a news conference in Austin Friday afternoon and sat down with podcaster Joe Rogan later in the day.
Trump Predicts He’ll Break Records for Deportations
Trump is predicting he’ll break records for the number of people deported from the United States if he wins the election.
At the news conference in Texas, Trump praised President Dwight D. Eisenhower for overseeing mass deportations as part of a sweeping plan “Operation Wetback.” Trump has made mass deportation a centerpiece of his campaign for a second term in the White House.
“I think we’ll break that record,” Trump said of Eisenhower’s deportations. “Not that I want to break it, but I think we have no choice.”
He said his administration will put “these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail or kick them the hell out of the country.”
Trump’s Interview With Rogan Released
Trump’s three-hour interview with podcaster Rogan has been released.
The nation’s most listened-to podcaster pressed Trump on whether he’s “completely committed” to bringing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. into his administration.
“Oh, I completely am,” Trump responded. “But the only thing I want to be a little careful about with him is the environmental. Because he doesn’t like oil, I love oil and gas.”
He said he’ll tell Kennedy to “focus on health, do whatever you want.” Trump said he’s faced pressure not to work with Kennedy, citing “big Pharma” as one example.
Beyoncé Takes Stage at Harris Rally
Actress Jessica Alba kicked off Harris’s star-studded rally in Houston on Friday evening.
Beyoncé later took the stage and gave the city’s neighborhoods shoutouts, to raucous cheers from the crowd.
“We are all part of something much bigger,” she said. “We must vote, and we need you.”
“Our moment right now. It’s time for America to sing a new song. Our voices sing a chorus of unity,” she said, casting her remarks forward, and introducing Harris.
Harris started speaking at 10:20 p.m. ET, nearly an hour later than scheduled.
“For anyone watching from another state, if you think you are protected from Trump abortion bans because you live in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada, New York, California, or any state where voters or legislators have protected reproductive freedom, please know: No one is protected,” Harris warned. “Because a Donald Trump national ban will outlaw abortion in every single state.”
“All that to say, elections matter,” she said.
The abortion issue is central to Harris’s platform and she chose Texas due to the state’s restrictive laws.
A recent Wall Street Journal poll, which surveyed 1,500 registered voters between Oct. 19 and Oct. 22, showed Trump leading Harris 47 percent to 45 percent. The survey also found that the economy is the top issue for voters, with 25 percent identifying it as the most important concern, followed by immigration at 23 percent, and abortion at 16 percent.
The Associated Press and Epoch Times reporter Emel Akan contributed to this report.