Fact check: Kamala Harris’s speech at the White House Ellipse

Washington, DC – In a speech from the Ellipse adjoining the White House – besides known arsenic the President’s Park – 1 week from Election Day, Vice President Kamala Harris drew a crisp opposition with erstwhile President Donald Trump, calling him a “petty tyrant” and repeating a enactment she has utilized successful caller days – that she would statesman her statesmanlike word not with an enemies list, but with a to-do list.

Harris spoke astatine the tract wherever Trump delivered his “Save America” rally up of the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. During the October 29 speech, Harris said Trump had been “at this precise spot … and sent an equipped mob to the United States Capitol to overturn the volition of the radical successful a escaped and just election”.

In her speech’s archetypal half, Harris focused connected the risks she believes Trump poses for the country. Later, she shifted towards policy, distinguishing parts of her docket connected taxes, termination and migration from Trump’s.

“Politicians person got to halt treating migration arsenic an contented to scare up votes successful an election,” she said, “and alternatively dainty it arsenic the superior situation that it is.”

Harris’s run said the attendance was 75,000, which would beryllium the largest assemblage of her campaign. The House Select Committee that investigated the events of January 6, 2021, said the “Save America” rally drew 53,000 people. About 2 hours earlier Harris began speaking, lines of supporters snaked astir fencing adjacent the Ellipse site, moving for blocks and reaching good into the National Mall. Campaign volunteers worked the lines to motion up attendees for an app that lets them canvass different voters.

Here’s a rundown of six notable moments, fact-checked.

“He says that 1 of his highest priorities is to acceptable escaped the convulsive extremists who insulted those instrumentality enforcement officers connected January 6.”

Harris accurately said 140 instrumentality enforcement officers were injured successful the January 6, 2021, attack. Trump has repeatedly called the defendants charged successful the onslaught “hostages” oregon “warriors” and promised to pardon those who stormed the Capitol.

In September 2022, 2 months earlier helium announced his campaign, Trump told blimpish vigor big Wendy Bell that helium had met with immoderate of the January 6 defendants. “I volition look precise very favourably astir afloat pardons,” helium said, adding, “I mean afloat pardons, with an apology to many.”

In a March Truth Social post, helium promised that 1 of his “first acts” arsenic president would beryllium to “Free the January 6 Hostages being wrongfully imprisoned!” And helium told Time Magazine successful April helium would “consider” pardoning each 1 of them.

More than 1,500 defendants person been charged successful the storming of the Capitol, Justice Department information shows. About 571 were charged with assaulting, resisting oregon impeding instrumentality enforcement agents oregon officers oregon obstructing those officers during a civilian disorder, including astir 164 defendants charged with utilizing a deadly oregon unsafe limb oregon causing superior bodily wounded to an officer.

“Trump intends to usage the United States subject against American citizens who simply disagree with him. People, helium calls, quote, ‘the force from within’.”

Trump has repeatedly talked astir the “enemy from within” successful his October speeches and interviews.

Trump told Fox News’ Howard Kurtz connected October 20 that Representative Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi, some Democrats from California, are “the force from within”. However, Trump is often vague erstwhile helium uses this phrase. Trump says that the “enemy from within” is simply a “bigger enemy” than overseas enemies, specified arsenic China oregon Russia.

He sometimes uses the operation soon aft speaking astir President Joe Biden oregon Harris, arsenic helium did connected October 27 successful his Madison Square Garden rally successful New York City.

“We’re moving against thing acold bigger than Joe oregon Kamala and acold much almighty than them, which is simply a massive, vicious, crooked, extremist near instrumentality that runs today’s Democrat Party. They’re conscionable vessels. In fact, they’re cleanable vessels due to the fact that they’ll ne'er springiness them a hard time. They’ll bash immoderate they want. I cognize galore of them. It’s conscionable this amorphous radical of people. But they’re astute and they’re vicious. And we person to decision them.

“And erstwhile I accidental ‘the force from within’, the different broadside goes brainsick … ‘How tin helium accidental present they’ve done precise atrocious things to this country?’ They are so the force from within. But this is who we’re fighting.”

On October 13, Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo asked Trump astir the anticipation of Election Day chaos. Trump warned of “very atrocious people”, “radical near lunatics” who should beryllium handled if “necessary” by the National Guard oregon the military.

Trump would “ban termination nationwide, restrict entree to commencement power and enactment IVF treatments astatine hazard and unit states to show women’s pregnancies. Just Google Project 2025 and work the plans for yourself.”

This is misleading.

Since April, Trump has consistently said termination authorities should beryllium near to the states. He has said that helium would not motion a nationalist termination ban. As president, however, Trump endorsed a 20-week nationalist termination ban. Early successful his 2024 statesmanlike campaign, helium floated enactment for 15 oregon 16-week national termination bans, quality outlets reported.

Trump said successful a May interrogation with CBS News that helium was “looking at” commencement power restrictions, but helium rapidly tried to clarify his words, penning connected Truth Social: “I person ne'er and volition ne'er advocator for imposing restrictions connected commencement control.”

Supporters question flags astatine the National Mall successful Washington, DC, wherever Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a code 1 week earlier the statesmanlike predetermination [Evelyn Hockstein]

Trump has expressed support for successful vitro fertilisation during the 2024 run amid Democratic disapproval that Republicans privation to restrict oregon destruct the practice. In April, helium released a video successful which helium said helium supports making it “easier” for families to person babies, not harder. “That includes supporting the availability of fertility treatments, similar IVF, successful each authorities successful America,” Trump said. He has besides precocious projected having the authorities screen IVF costs oregon requiring insurers to bash so. He hasn’t said however helium would bash this.

Nothing successful Trump’s Agenda 47 requires states to show women’s pregnancies. Instead, Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s 900-page blimpish argumentation manual for the adjacent Republican administration, proposes withholding national wealth from states that don’t study much elaborate accusation astir however galore abortions instrumentality spot successful their states, arsenic good arsenic different statistic for miscarriages and stillbirths to the national government. The task doesn’t telephone for the monitoring of each pregnancies.

Trump would wage for his taxation program with “a 20 percent nationalist income taxation connected everything you bargain that is imported. … A Trump income taxation that would outgo the mean household astir $4,000 much a year.”

Half True.

Trump has discussed raising tariffs crossed the committee by 10 percent to 20 percent, truthful the 20 percent fig Harris cited is connected the precocious extremity of what Trump has said. Tariffs are besides not technically portion of the taxation code, but their effect connected consumers would beryllium akin successful costing them much money.

The $4,000 Harris quoted is connected the precocious extremity of autarkic estimates. Two estimates we recovered broadly enactment Harris’s $4,000 amount. Two others amusement a smaller – though inactive important – effect, successful the $1,700 to $2,600 range.

“You volition wage adjacent much if Donald Trump yet gets his mode and repeals the Affordable Care Act, which would propulsion millions of Americans disconnected their wellness insurance. And instrumentality america backmost to erstwhile security companies person the powerfulness to contradict radical with pre-existing conditions.”

Half True.

In his 2016 statesmanlike campaign, Trump promised to repeal and regenerate the Affordable Care Act, and arsenic president, helium supported legislature Republicans’ failed efforts to execute this.

During his 2024 campaign, Trump’s presumption has vacillated. At times, he’s said that helium wants to regenerate the instrumentality with an “alternative”. But successful March, helium wrote connected Truth Social that he’s “not moving to terminate” the instrumentality and alternatively wants to marque it “better” and “less expensive”.

During the September 10 statesmanlike statement with Harris successful Philadelphia, Trump said helium has “concepts of a plan” to regenerate the law, but helium would “run it arsenic bully arsenic it tin beryllium run” earlier instituting his ain program without providing further details.

More than 1,500 doctors released a missive connected October 17 calling connected Trump to uncover details astir however helium would change the healthcare law, saying voters request the mentation to marque an informed decision.

Trump “tried to chopped Medicare and Social Security each twelvemonth helium was president”.

This needs context.

On Medicare, Trump released 4 successive yearly budgets that projected cutting Medicare. However, experts are divided connected however overmuch those cuts would person wounded beneficiaries had they been enacted. Many were method changes that had bipartisan enactment and would person been much apt to wounded providers than patients.

On Social Security, Trump submitted fund proposals that included cuts to Social Security. These were ne'er implemented, due to the fact that of absorption successful Congress.

However, Harris glosses implicit what these cuts involved. The projected cuts were focused connected 2 parts of the programme – Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income – not the much wide utilized old-age and subsister benefits.

Social Security Disability Insurance benefits radical with carnal and intelligence conditions that are terrible capable to permanently support them from working. Supplemental Security Income payments are constricted to low-income Americans – older adults, oregon adults oregon children who are disabled oregon blind.

Although these cuts would person affected adjacent to 10 cardinal Americans, the excavation of radical who person old-age and subsister benefits is astir 7 times arsenic large.

Trump has promised successful 2024 not to chopped either programme.