# Kamala Harris in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania | September 13, 2024 Auto-transcribed by https://aliceapp.ai on Saturday, 14 Sep 2024. Synced media and text playback available on this page: https://aliceapp.ai/recordings/gw7Grj2Ex1yli5t9LN_R8ekdzAcKIpu4 * Words : 2,240 * Duration : 00:22:56 * Recorded on : Unknown date * Uploaded on : 2024-09-14 22:15:32 UTC * At : Unknown location * Using : Uploaded to aliceapp.ai ## Speakers: * Kamala Harris - 100.0% ---------------------------- Kamala Harris [00:00:00] Good evening, Pennsylvania. Kamala Harris [00:00:05] Good evening. Can we please hear from Mary Grace? Kamala Harris [00:00:20] It's good to be back in Pennsylvania. Hi, everyone. Kamala Harris [00:00:36] Okay. Okay. We got some business to handle. Um, okay, so let me start by saying to everyone here, thank you for all you are doing and for taking the time to be here this evening. You know, one of the things that I love about everyone who is here and what we are doing, you know, in the midst of this moment, where there are people trying to divide us as a nation, trying to make people feel small and feel alone, these are moments that remind all of us that we are all in this together as one loving community. Kamala Harris [00:01:19] We're all in this together. So thank you all for the time you've taken to be here this evening. I want to thank also all the incredible leaders, including Governor Shapiro, who you heard from earlier, Senator Bob Casey, who we will re elect to the United States Senate, and Mayor Brown. And thank you, mayor, for the warm welcome. Kamala Harris [00:01:46] All right, so, Pennsylvania, three days ago, Donald Trump and I had our debate. Kamala Harris [00:01:56] You watched it. Kamala Harris [00:02:01] So, yeah. So here's the thing. So I take it many people here watched it. Kamala Harris [00:02:12] You'll remember that night I talked about issues that mattered to families across America, like bringing down the cost of living, investing in America's small businesses, protecting reproductive freedom, and keeping our nation safe and secure. Kamala Harris [00:02:37] But that is not what we heard heard from Donald Trump. Instead, it was the same old show, the same tired playbook we've heard for years with no plan, no plan on how he would address the needs of the american people. Well, folks, um, it's time to turn the page. Turn the page. Kamala Harris [00:03:11] We're not going back. We're not going back. Kamala Harris [00:03:17] And we are not going back because. We're not going back because America is ready for a new way forward. Kamala Harris [00:03:32] We are ready for a new generation of leadership that is optimistic about what we can do together, which is why. And, Mary Grace, thank you. Which is why Democrats, Republicans, and independents are supporting our campaign. Kamala Harris [00:03:53] We need a president of the United States who works for all the american people. Kamala Harris [00:04:06] And that just stops with all the trying to divide us. Like, people are exhausted with that stuff. Exhausted. And, you know, my entire career, I have fought for the people. As a young courtroom prosecutor in Oakland, I stood up for women and children against predators who abused them. Kamala Harris [00:04:29] As attorney general of California, I took on the big banks and delivered $20 billion for middle class families who faced foreclosure. Kamala Harris [00:04:43] I stood up for veterans and students being scammed by big for profit colleges, for workers who are being cheated out of the wages they were due for seniors facing elder abuse. And as attorney general of, uh, a border state, I took on transnational criminal organizations, like the Sinaloa cartel, that traffic in drugs and threatened the safety of our communities. Kamala Harris [00:05:19] I know these cartels first. And as president, I will make sure we prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law for pushing poison like fentanyl on our children. Kamala Harris [00:05:40] And as president, I will fight on behalf of all communities and all Americans. And together, we will build a brighter future for our nation. Kamala Harris [00:05:59] Together. Together. Kamala Harris [00:06:15] And that future. And that future we build will include what I call an opportunity economy. So that every american has an opportunity to own a home, to build wealth, and to start a business. You know, I love our small businesses. So growing up, I really do. Kamala Harris [00:06:37] We have small business leaders here. Raise your hand. Yeah, right. Kamala Harris [00:06:48] So, growing up, my sister and my mother, uh, my sister and me had a mother. Half a mother had a mother. Excuse me. She passed. But, um, our mother worked long hours. Kamala Harris [00:06:59] She worked hard. She worked long hours. And my sister Maya and I would go over to Miss Shelton's house. Miss Shelton lived a couple of doors down, and she helped my mother take care of us. And we, in fact, used to call her our second mother. Kamala Harris [00:07:13] Well, Miss Shelton was a small business owner. And I will tell you, since I was a child, I know the character and the person who is a small business owner. You're not only business leaders, you're civic leaders. You hold the community together. You're part of the fabric of the community. Kamala Harris [00:07:31] And small business owners are, uh, the backbone of America's economy. The backbone of America's economy. Kamala Harris [00:07:42] Which is why part of my plan that you heard about the other night will give a $50,000 tax deduction to startup small businesses, knowing that not everybody, like my opponent, got handed $40 million on a silver tray and then filed for bankruptcy six times. Kamala Harris [00:08:07] And people sometimes just need the opportunity, because we, as Americans, do not lack for ambition, for aspiration, for dreams, for the preparedness to do hard work. But not everyone has the opportunity, because not everyone has the access. When I talk about building an opportunity economy, it is grounded in that foundational belief that when given an opportunity, people excel every day. Every day. Kamala Harris [00:08:45] Part of my focus is on the fact that we need to build more housing in America. Kamala Harris [00:08:54] And so we are going to cut red tape and work with the private sector to build 3 million new homes by the end of my first term. Kamala Harris [00:09:07] And I have a plan to help lower the cost of living for America's families on everything from healthcare to groceries, including I will take on corporate price gouging, which, as we know, is about those few bad guys taking advantage of desperate people. And there needs to be a consequence. Under my plan, more than 100 million Americans will get a tax cut, including, including expanding the child tax credit to $6,000 during the first year of a child's life. Understanding that new parents need support in that most critical phase of their child's development to help them buy a car seat, a, uh, crib, baby clothes. I will also make sure good paying jobs are available to all Americans, not just those with college degrees. Kamala Harris [00:10:19] For far too long, our nation has encouraged only one path to success, a four year college degree. Our nation needs to recognize the value of other paths, additional paths, such as apprenticeships and technical programs. Kamala Harris [00:10:41] So, as president, I will get rid of the unnecessary degree requirements for federal jobs, to increase jobs for folks without a four year degree, understanding that requiring a certain degree does not necessarily talk about one's skills, and I will challenge the private sector to do the same. Kamala Harris [00:11:19] All of this to say, look, I come from the middle class. I understand where I come from, and I'm never going to forget that. And I will always put middle class working people first. It will always be my priority. Always be my priority. Kamala Harris [00:11:38] I know where I come from. I know where I come from. Kamala Harris [00:11:46] But now Donald Trump has a different plan. Kamala Harris [00:11:51] Just Google, just, just look up the Google, just Google. Project 2025. Kamala Harris [00:12:03] It is a detailed, dangerous blueprint for what he will do if he were elected president again. Donald Trump will give billionaires and corporations massive tax cuts like he did before. He intends to cut Social Security and Medicare, and he wants to impose what I call the Trump sales tax on everyday basic necessities, which, as economists have reviewed, would cost the average family nearly $4,000 more a year. Kamala Harris [00:12:42] In fact, independent economists like Goldman Sachs have said my plan would grow our economy and, ah, his plan would shrink the economy, reignite inflation, and send us into a recession by the middle of next year. Kamala Harris [00:13:04] On top of all of this, Donald Trump intends to end the Affordable Care act. And let's remember, like we're not here with Trump amnesia. We remember, remember when he was president, he tried 62 times to end the Affordable Care act. And as he said in the debate just this week, he has no, no plan to replace it. Kamala Harris [00:13:31] Right? Right. You said it. He said he has, quote, concepts of a plan. Kamala Harris [00:13:41] Concepts of a plan. No actual plan. So let's just think about this for a moment. He's going to threaten health insurance for the 45 million people who rely on it based on a concept. Kamala Harris [00:14:00] And take us back when insurance companies. Kamala Harris [00:14:06] Because we remember where that was. We remember what that was when insurance companies had the power to deny people with pre existing conditions. Remember what that was like. Remember, well, we are not going, uh, back. We are not going back. Kamala Harris [00:14:27] No, because. Because ours is a fight for the future, and. And ours is a fight for freedom, like the fundamental freedom of a woman to make decisions. Decisions about her own body and not have her government telling her what to do. Kamala Harris [00:15:15] And we remember how we got here. Donald Trump handpicked three members of the United States Supreme Court with the intent that they would overturn Roe v. Wade, and they did exactly as he intended. Kamala Harris [00:15:45] And we. And we understand where we are. We understand where we are. Hey, listen, listen. Now. Kamala Harris [00:15:55] Now is the time to get a hostage deal and cease fire. We have been working around the clock to get that done, and I respect your voice, but right now, I am speaking. Kamala Harris [00:16:28] So on the issue. So on the issue of fundamental rights and freedoms, we remember how he selected those members of the supreme Court to undo Roe v. Wade. They did just as he intended. And what we have seen is, in state after state, they passed laws to criminalize healthcare providers, to punish women. Kamala Harris [00:16:51] Now, more than 20 states have a Trump abortion bandaid. Many with no exceptions, many with no exceptions for rape and incest, which is immoral. To tell a survivor of a violation to their body that they don't have a right to make a decision about what happens to their body next, that's immoral. And let us agree, one does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree. The government should not be telling her what to do. Kamala Harris [00:17:28] Not the government. Kamala Harris [00:17:34] And I will tell you, when Congress passes a bill to restore reproductive freedom, as president of the United States, I will proudly sign it into law. Kamala Harris [00:17:50] Proudly. Kamala Harris [00:17:57] And I'm traveling our country, and I'll tell you, across our nation, we are witnessing a full on assault on other hard fought, hard won fundamental freedoms and rights, like the freedom to vote, the freedom to be safe from gun violence, the freedom to join a union, and the m freedom to love who you love openly and with pride and generations. Let's remember who we are. As Americans, generations before us led the fight for freedom. And to the friends here, I say the baton is now in our hands. Kamala Harris [00:19:03] And so much is on the line in this election. We all know and remember, this is not 2016 or 2020. The stakes are even higher than they were then, because two months ago, the United States Supreme Court essentially told the former president that he will effectively be immune. No matter what he does, if he gets back into the White House, just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails. Imagine what that might mean, right? Kamala Harris [00:19:42] He who has vowed, if re elected, he would be a dictator on day one. Kamala Harris [00:19:49] He who called for the, quote, termination of the Constitution of the United States. Kamala Harris [00:19:58] And let us be clear. 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. Never again. Kamala Harris [00:20:31] So, Pennsylvania, it all comes down to this. We are here together because we love our country. We love our country. And we who are here understand the awesome responsibility, the awesome responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on earth, the privilege and pride of being an American. Kamala Harris [00:21:21] And I do believe it is the, um, highest form of patriotism to fight for the ideals of our country and to fight to realize the promise of America. So, Pennsylvania, 53 days until election day. Kamala Harris [00:21:43] And we know ours will be a tight race until the very end. We are the underdog. We are the underdog. Let's remember that and know that. And we know how they play. Kamala Harris [00:21:56] We know how they play. We are the underdog, and we have some very hard work ahead of us. But here's the thing. We like hard work. Hard work is good work. Kamala Harris [00:22:10] And with your help, we will win. Kamala Harris [00:22:16] We will win. Kamala Harris [00:22:20] So, Pennsylvania, today I ask you, are you ready to make your voices heard? Kamala Harris [00:22:28] Do we believe in freedom? Do we believe in opportunity? Opportunity? Do we believe in the promise of America? And are we ready to fight for it? Kamala Harris [00:22:47] And when we fight, God, uh, bless you, and God bless you, and I pray for.