PITTSBURGH — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz gathered hundreds of Pittsburgh Steelers fans Tuesday night at Acresure Stadium, home of the pro football team, and urged the crowd to vote early.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ Democratic presidential running mate campaigned in southwestern Pennsylvania as she continues her offensive into popular battleground states that could decide the 2024 presidential election.
In the Keystone State, the race between Harris and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump remains close.
Former Steeler Will Allen introduced Walz to a cheering crowd dotted with Steelers hats, jerseys and Terrible Towels, the team’s official rally towel.
“Give me a moment here. Yesterday, I went to Lambeau Field for the first time,” Walz said of his trip to Green Bay, Wisconsin, and the home of the Green Bay Packers football team. “Today, I’m going to Steeler territory for the first time. Thank you.”
The former high school football coach and teacher visited Wisconsin on Monday, tying it with Pennsylvania on his list of must-win battleground states. Others include Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and North Carolina.
Early voting by mail has already begun in Pennsylvania.
“If you’re going to vote by mail, vote by mail as soon as possible,” Walz said.
Harris campaigned in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Monday night before heading to Michigan on Tuesday.
Attack on Trump
Like Harris had done the night before in the northwestern part of the state, Walz electrified the crowd in Pittsburgh by attacking Trump’s mental state.
“I don’t usually recommend things like this, but watch this guy, watch his town hall. He stops taking questions, and while they’re playing a Spotify list, he’s like, 30 “I stood frozen on stage for minutes,” Walz said, referring to President Trump’s town hall Monday night in suburban Philadelphia.
“If this was your grandfather, he’d take the keys away,” Waltz said with a laugh. “And let me tell you this: It would be weird if this guy wasn’t running for president of the United States.”
In Erie, Harris played a video clip of the former president warning that Trump is “losing his freedom” and explaining potential plans to use the military to silence “the enemy from within.”
President Trump wrote on his social media platforms Tuesday morning that Harris’ own health report was “really bad.”
“Given all the problems she has, the big question is whether she should run for president,” he wrote in Truth Social.
Harris’ medical report released Saturday listed her in “excellent health.”
farm waltz
Walz wore a white shirt and sports jacket when speaking to football fans, but earlier in the day he wore a flannel shirt and spoke to supporters gathered outside a barn in Lawrence County about himself and Harris. He said he would fight for resources for America’s farmers and rural residents.
The governor also emphasized his integrity as a veteran, hunter, and gun owner. His speech can be viewed in full on C-SPAN.
The Harris-Waltz campaign unveiled a plan for rural America on Tuesday, pledging to strengthen rural health care and support small farms.
Walz also stopped at a Butler County garden center and cafe before heading into the city.
The pro-Democratic Rural America Political Action Committee on Tuesday highlighted economic analysis showing President Trump’s promised tariffs would reduce exports and put farmers out of business.
According to an analysis by the University of Illinois College of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, Pennsylvania farmers exported $111 million in soybeans, $50 million in corn exports, $22 million in beef exports, and $20 million in wheat exports. There is a possibility of losing it.
“These new studies literally show that President Trump’s tariffs will put Pennsylvania farmers out of business,” Chris Gibbs, an Ohio corn and soybean farmer and president of Rural Voices USA, said in a statement Tuesday. It shows,” he said. “Exports are essential for Pennsylvania farmers, but they cannot absorb the sharp decline in exports and prices that these studies predict.”
President Trump defended his tariff proposal at the Economic Club of Chicago earlier Tuesday. He told Bloomberg Editor-in-Chief John Micklethwait in an hour-long interview that he wanted to stem the U.S. manufacturing boom by imposing tariffs that were “so high, so scary, so unpleasant” that companies would relocate. He said he would promote it.
Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio is scheduled to campaign in Pittsburgh on Thursday.
