With less than two weeks until polling day, the US presidential election campaign is intensifying, leading to pointed criticisms exchanged between candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.
While campaigning in Pennsylvania, former President Donald Trump criticized Vice President Harris, asserting that if she were elected, she would "guarantee" the United States would enter World War III and would struggle to engage effectively with global leaders such as Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to The Hill.
"To make her president would be to gamble with the lives of millions of people. She would get us into a World War III guaranteed because she is too grossly incompetent to do the job," Trump stated.
He added that people's "sons and daughters will end up getting drafted to go fight for a war in a country that you've never heard of." He vowed to prevent World War III, claiming the country has "never been so close" to it.
Trump asserted that conflicts, such as the one that erupted after the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, would not have happened if he were still president.
The former president's comments follow a letter issued on Friday by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), which condemned Harris for labeling Trump a "fascist"—a term that Trump has also directed at her.
Although Harris had not explicitly labeled Trump a fascist before, she expressed her belief that he fits that description during a CNN town hall on Wednesday. Her comments came in response to a question about remarks made by Trump's former chief of staff, John Kelly, who stated that Trump "certainly falls into the general definition of fascist." Harris's response underscored her concerns about Trump's behavior and rhetoric, reflecting the escalating tensions in the political landscape.
Meanwhile, President Biden cautioned against men casting their votes for former President Trump in the upcoming general election, calling it a "mistake" as he boarded Air Force One on Saturday. Following that, during a campaign stop for Vice President Harris in the swing state of Pennsylvania, Biden also characterized the current election cycle as a battle between "decency and lack of decency," referring to former President Trump as a "loser."
"This is the most important election of our lifetime, regardless of your age," Biden told the audience in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Saturday.
"Not a joke, not hyperbole; this isn't about Democrat or Republican. It's a matter of decency versus a lack of decency," he emphasized. "This is about character." He further asserted that Harris represents a "clearer" option for the role of commander-in-chief.
"The choice couldn't be clearer. The choice couldn't be more stark," the president affirmed.
In recent weeks, Democratic leaders have criticized the prospect of another Trump presidency, labeling the former president a "fascist" following his threats to deploy military force against what he referred to as "the enemy within."
