Kamala Harris hosts rally in symbolic location
8
World
October 30, 2024 20:20
washington, dc - Kamala Harris holds a rally in her backyard, aiming for presidential image, at a symbolic location. Learn more on telegraaf.nl
We are in the metro heading to the center of DC. The Democrat is giving a campaign speech there. I ask the boy if it's his first time going to an election rally. His mother replies, 'No, but it is the first time he remembers. The last time, he was just a toddler.'
Harris is playing a home game tonight. The rally is practically in her backyard, at least from her workplace. The performance at The Ellipse park is intended to give her a presidential aura, with the White House in the background.
The location is also symbolic. The Ellipse is where opponent Trump, on a cold day in January 2021, urged his supporters to demonstratively march towards Congress. It was the prelude to the storming of the Capitol, where several people died that day.
Now the atmosphere is pleasant. In addition to parents with children, there are also plenty of tourists who have come to the rally. I hear Italian behind me, something Eastern European a bit further away. A Dutch couple we know sends a picture. Are they also in the queue? Well, no. They turn out to be sitting a bit further down enjoying a beer in a rooftop bar.
At the rally, I encounter the usual suspects. The inevitable T-shirt vendors show up a few blocks away from the location. Anti-Israel protesters chant their familiar slogans. A group with Ukrainian flags seeks attention for that other war. And then there are the eccentrics, like an old man dressed as Uncle Sam. Or the oddball carrying a banner stating that the Republican has a 'labile penis'. Could he be referring to incontinence problems?
Many more people have turned up at the event than there are spots in the park. Thousands listen to the speech from the open area around the Washington Monument, where large screens are set up. It's a mild October evening. Cheers rise in the distance. The sound approaches like a speeding train and washes over the area. Yes, indeed, Harris is playing a home game tonight, though it may be her last.