Harris in Atlanta: Trump should 'never again' stand behind 'seal of president'

CLARKSTON, Ga. - Vice President Kamala Harris made her most impassioned argument to date for the nation's highest office during a rally in metro Atlanta on Thursday evening. The event, part of the "When We Vote We Win" concert series, aims to boost voter enthusiasm and encourage early voting among Georgians. 

Director Spike Lee, actor Samuel L. Jackson, filmmaker Tyler Perry and DJ Mix Master David joined the vice president, former President Barack Obama, and musician Bruce Springsteen at Halliford Stadium in Clarkston. 

Harris gives stern warning about Trump

Harris highlighted what she described as the heightened stakes, comparing the current situation to past election cycles.

"So, listen, so much is on the line in this election. And this is not 2016 or 2020. The stakes are even higher," she told the crowd, pointing to the behavior of former President Donald Trump. "Over the last two years and in particular the last eight years, Donald Trump has become more confused. More unstable. And more angry."

Harris emphasized the absence of key figures who, she said, had previously managed Trump’s actions. "Last time at least, there were people around him who could control him. But do notice in this election, they're not with him this time."

She cited recent comments from John Kelly, Trump’s former White House Chief of Staff and a retired four-star Marine general, who claimed that Trump had praised Adolf Hitler during his presidency. "Take a moment to think about what that means," Harris said, referencing Trump’s reported remark that "Hitler did some good things" and his expressed wish for generals loyal to him rather than the Constitution.

"This is not 2016 and it is not 2020," Harris reiterated, underscoring that the stakes are different this time. She expressed concern about Trump’s potential return to power, especially in light of a recent Supreme Court ruling. "Just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails," she warned, claiming that Trump would attempt to wield "unchecked and extreme power" if re-elected.

Harris further referenced Trump’s promise to be a "dictator on day one" and statements labeling his political opponents as the "enemy from within." She called these actions dangerous and contrary to the principles of democracy. "Someone who suggests we should terminate the Constitution of the United States of America should never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States," she declared.

Appealing to voters, Harris asked them to visualize the outcome of the election: "It is either Donald Trump in there, stewing over his enemies list, or me working for you, checking off my To-Do list. You have the power to make that decision."

Harris encouraged Georgia voters to act swiftly, as early voting is well underway and Election Day is now 12 days away. "Vote is your voice, and your voice is your power," she said. 

Harris also channeled the spirit of the late Congressman John Lewis, quoting his reminder that "democracy is not a state, it is an act."

Harris also told the crowd that the family of Amber Thurman, the Georgia medical student who died after taking abortion pills and suffering complications, was in attenance. 

RELATED: Kamala Harris to campaign with Barack Obama next week in Georgia

Obama: Harris will ‘be focused on you’

This rally marked the first time Vice President Harris appeared on the campaign trail alongside former President Obama. In his introductory remarks, Obama outlines his argument about how Trump is borrowing his record to run for reelection.

"Because he was a reality star on 'The Apprentice,' there's some folks who think, 'I don't know, he's a businessman, he must know something about the economy.' I have heard people say this when I talk to them, 'Why would you even thing about voting for this guy?' 'Well, I remember the economy when he first came in, it was pretty good.' Yeah, yeah it was good because it was my economy," Obama quipped, adding that he handed over 75-straight-months of job growth to Trump only for him to "give tax cuts to folks who didn't need it, drove up the deficit in the process, and now he wants to do it again."

"You can't give him credit for that," he added.

Obama, who got a rousing reception from the rally crowd, told his audience, "I get why people are looking to shake things up, but what I cannot understand is why anybody would think that Donald Trump would shake things up in ways that are good for you."

Obama argued his successor was always "trying to sell you stuff," was someone who only cares about "his ego, his money, his status," and regularly gives lengthy speeches that are "just word salad."

"We do not need four years of a wannabe king, a wannabe dictator," Obama said before offering Harris as someone "ready for the job."

Obama also touched on how many Republicans, who are sick of Trump, would be voting this year for Harris.

After arguing Trump is focused only on himself, Obama added, "If you elect Kamala Harris ... she will be focused on you."

Bruce Springsteen performs at Harris rally in Georgia

Springsteen, too, focused on Trump.

After a performance of "The Promised Land," a ballad off his 1978 album "Darkness on the Edge of Town," Springsteen told the Georgia audience he was backing Harris because he wants "a president who reveres the Constitution."

"There is only one candidate in this election who holds those principles dear, Kamala Harris. She’s running to be the 47th president of the United States. Donald Trump is running to be an American tyrant," Springsteen added before playing "Land of Hope and Dreams" and "Dancing in the Dark."

The rally comes a day after an equally star-studded rally for Harris' Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump. The Trump campaign called Harris’ use of Obama and Springsteen "a desperate, last-ditch effort to salvage her spiraling campaign."

"Relying on celebrities is nothing new for the party of Hollywood elites — and as voters realize the depths of Kamala’s incompetence and radicalism, she needs an added draw," the campaign said in a statement.

The Harris campaign says the attendance at Thursday’s rally was 23,000 people, the biggest rally, they say, of this election cycle.

Harris rally targets diverse America

Harris’ rally in Clarkston — an eastern Atlanta suburb — reflected the suburb’s reputation as the "most diverse square mile in America." The community has taken in waves of immigrants and refugees, and 40% of its population was foreign-born in 2020.

The DJ working the crowd before the event started called out not only to graduates of historically Black colleges and universities, but to West Indians. Among those in the snaking line to enter were people of Asian descent and women in hijabs.

Many attendees said they were trying to push their relatives and neighbors to the polls to vote for Harris, either through formal volunteer efforts or on their own. "I decided to go volunteer because I couldn’t keep my mouth shut," said Beverly Payne, who lives in Cumming, a Republican suburban stronghold north of Atlanta.

Payne said she is still working on persuading her mother but has already swung one Georgia vote to Harris. "My 85-year-old father has gone Democratic for the first time in his life," she said.

Actor Samuel L. Jackson, director Spike Lee and actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry also spoke at the start of the event.

"No matter what kind of shenanigans, skullduggery and subterfuge, the okie-doke, we’re not going back," Lee proclaimed.

Democrats are known for leaning on high-profile surrogates in the final days of presidential races.

Springsteen has long been a supporter of Democratic presidential campaigns. The artist backed Obama in 2008 and 2012, even endorsing the would-be president in the contentious 2008 Democratic primary. He backed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016, performing at a Philadelphia rally on the eve of Election Day, and endorsed Biden in 2020. The New Jersey artist endorsed Harris earlier this month, calling Trump the "most dangerous candidate for president in my lifetime."

Beyoncé, too, backed Clinton in 2016, performing at an event in Cleveland alongside husband and rapper Jay Z just days before Election Day that year. And Taylor has become a staple at Democratic events and fundraisers.

But Clinton’s loss to Trump in 2016, despite the considerable star power behind her, serves as a warning for Democrats that energy provided by big-name artists like Springsteen and Beyoncé is often not enough to win an election.

Harris campaign advisers, though, see events like those in Georgia and Texas as major moments to mobilize voter enthusiasm and get out the vote before Election Day.

Harris greeted at Atlanta airport by mayor, dignitaries

Harris landed in Atlanta just after 3:30 p.m. and was greeted by Rep. Nikema Williams, Rep. Lucy McBath and her husband, Curtis McBath, and Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens. 

Rep. McBath proudly showed the vice president her shirt of Rosie the Riveter "We Can Do It" with Harris' face inserted on it.

12 days to Election Day

According to the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, more than 2.1 million Georgians have already voted early in the 2024 presidential election as of Wednesday morning. That accounts for about 30% of the state's registered voters. 

The margin between the two candidates remains slim. A recent poll by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the University of Georgia found Trump with 47% support in the state compared to Harris's 43%. The survey said 8% of voters remain undecided.

Harris’ run of events with celebrities will continue Friday when she travels to Texas for a Houston rally with Beyoncé, according to three people familiar with the matter. The singer is a Houston native, and her 2016 song "Freedom" has become Harris’ campaign anthem.

While the Friday rally is in a red state that even the most optimistic Democrat knows the vice president is unlikely to turn blue in November, the event Thursday in Georgia highlights that state’s prominent place in her possible path to defeating Trump.

Democrats, led by then-former Vice President Joe Biden and Harris, won Georgia in 2020, becoming the first Democratic presidential campaign to win the Southern state since Bill Clinton in 1992. Harris’ campaign is hopeful she can keep the state blue in 2024.