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An audio town hall with Kamala Harris which was conducted by Charlamagne Tha God received rave reactions from those on social media who tuned in.
On Tuesday (October 15), Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris sat down for an audio town hall with The Breakfast Club host Charlamagne Tha God that saw the vice president assured and direct, delighting those on social media tuning in. The interview took place at the iHeart Radio studios in Detroit, Michigan – days after former President Donald Trump insulted the city while speaking to the Detroit Economic Club. The town hall was another stop on Vice President Harris’ media tour, this time with a distinct focus on the concerns of Black male voters, some of whom have expressed doubts about voting for her in November’s election. But Harris exuded confidence. “I’m going to win. I’m going to win,” she said to Charlamagne. “But it’s tight. And what is at stake is truly profound and historic.”
Charlamagne Tha God has expressed his support for Kamala Harris after previously declaring that he wouldn’t vote for President Joe Biden in the summer when he was the Democratic nominee. With The Breakfast Club reaching eight million listeners a month according to data, the host asked the vice president direct questions about her time as a district attorney and as California’s attorney general. “One of the biggest pieces of misinformation, one of the biggest allegations against you, is that you targeted and locked up thousands of black men in San Francisco,” he said pointing out her record of aggressive prosecution of weed-related crimes. “It’s just simply not true,” Harris replied. “I was the most progressive prosecutor in California on marijuana cases and would not send people to jail for simple possession of weed.” She added that if elected, she was prepared to decriminalize recreational marijuana nationwide.
Harris also touted her campaign’s “Opportunity Agenda” for Black men, which was released over the weekend during the conversation in addition to hitting Trump on several points including his desire to eradicate the Constitution due to racism. “Most of those amendments, one thing or another was about a movement by Black people to ensure we’d be equally protected under the law.”
Harris links Trump saying he’ll terminate the Constitution to his racism: “Most of those amendments, one thing or another was about a movement by Black people to ensure we’d be equally protected under the law.” pic.twitter.com/k8OQaSYOWY
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 15, 2024
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Charlamagne also joined in on jabbing the Republican presidential nominee over his racism in response to Harris outlining the differences between her policies and Trump’s, saying his vision was “about fascism, why can’t we just say that?” Harris responded, “Yes, we can say that.” Some callers got to ask questions in the town hall about reparations (to which Harris demurred) and about voting frustrations. “You can’t let anybody take you out of the game by not voting,” she said. “The solutions are not gonna just happen overnight… the things that we want and are prepared to fight for won’t happen if we’re not active and don’t participate.”
The town hall was a smashing success for those who tuned in via social media and through listening on CNN and MSNBC which aired it live. Jon Cooper, a former strategist for former President Barack Obama, lauded Harris’ appearance and the networks’ airing for a broader audience. “I was very happy to see that both CNN and MSNBC carried Kamala Harris’ national radio town hall event, moderated by Charlemagne tha God,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “It was one of her best interviews ever.”