Trump: We Have Enthusiasm Behind Us, Not Harris

Former President Donald Trump, in his first news conference since Vice President Kamala Harris named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, said Thursday the Republican Party has the enthusiasm of voters behind it heading into November's election.

Speaking at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in an event broadcast by Newsmax, Trump was asked whether he was concerned about the enthusiasm shown during rallies for his Democrat rival.

"Oh, give me a break," Trump said. "Listen, I had 107,000 people in New Jersey. You didn't report it. I'm so glad you asked. What did she have yesterday? 2,000 people? If I ever had 2,000 people, you'd say my campaign is finished. It's so dishonest, the press, and here's a great example. I had in Michigan recently, 25,000 people and 25,000 [other] people, we just couldn't get them in.

"We had in Harrisburg [Pennsylvania] 20-25,000 people and 20,000 people couldn't get in. We had so many. Nobody ever mentions that. When she gets 1,500 people, and I saw it yesterday on ABC where they said, 'Oh, the crowd was so big.' I have 10 times, 20 times, 30 times the crowd size. And they never say the crowd was big. That's why I'm always saying, turn around the cameras. I'm so glad you asked that. I think it's so terrible when you say, 'Well, she has 1,500 people, a thousand people,' and they talk about, "Oh, the enthusiasm.' Let me tell you, we have the enthusiasm, the Republican Party, and me as a candidate."

Trump said he has agreed to three debates, with Fox News on Sept. 4, ABC News on Sept. 10 and NBC News on Sept. 25. He said a few details need to be ironed out, such as locations, and said the ball is now in Harris' court.

"The other side has to agree to the terms," he said. "They may or may not agree. I don't know if they're going to agree. She hasn't done an interview. She can't do an interview. She's barely competent and she can't do an interview. But I look forward to the debates because I think we have to set the record straight."

Trump was asked why he thought Harris' popularity has risen in polls since she replaced President Joe Biden at the top of the ticket. Trump said that will turn when more people find out about her policies.

"The honeymoon period is going to end," he said. "Look, she's got a little period, she's got a convention coming up. It's about policy. It's not about her. I think she's incompetent because I've watched her. She destroyed California, she destroyed San Francisco. Everything she's touched has turned to bad things. But everything she's touched has turned bad. She's incompetent. The reason she's not doing what I do and she's not doing what she should be doing. She won't even do interviews with friendly people because she can't do better than Biden.

"He had a reason for not doing well, and he was never ... the sharpest or brightest bulb in the ceiling, that I can tell you, but he could do interviews, at least not lately. He couldn't, perhaps, but she should be doing interviews. She doesn't want to do interviews. And the reason she doesn't is, No. 1, her policies are so bad. I think that it's not going to change because it's really ultimately not about her as much as about her policies. She wants open borders. She wants to defund the police. She wants to take away your guns."

Trump was asked how he will vote regarding a ballot initiative in Florida that establishes a constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability. Florida currently prohibits abortions after six weeks. Trump said he will have another news conference to discuss the matter but hinted he thought the vote "will go a liberal way."

He added he didn't think abortion will be a factor in November.

"The abortion issue has been taken down many notches," he said. "I don't think it's a big factor anymore, really. And when people hear what I said in the debate [with Biden in June], and I think I said it very well during the debate, we brought it back to the states. Everybody wanted it in the states. And very importantly, and you think about this, assuming you have exceptions, if you don't have exceptions, it's a more difficult thing. At the same time, there are people that strongly feel that way, and you have to follow your heart, and you should follow your heart. But that issue is very much subdued."

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