Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Campaign Event | Ripon, WI

Ripon College
Ripon, Wisconsin

5:41 P.M. CDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Can we hear it for Liz Cheney?  (Applause.) 

AUDIENCE:  Thank you, Liz!  Thank you, Liz!  Thank you, Liz!

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  It is so good to be back in Wisconsin.  (Applause.)  I thank you, everyone, for being — please have a seat.  I thank you all for being here.  But I just — I have to emphasize that every time I come here and — and, Liz, I was actually a kid here, too, when my parents were at the University of Wisconsin.  (Laughs.)  So, we have that in common as well. 

In fact, Tony Evers always says when I land, “Welcome home.”  (Laughter.)  But I — I say all that to say every time that I’ve come here recently, one of the conversations that we have, all of us together, is how much we love our country and that that really is the binding factor in us all being together and taking the time to be together, to really just renew and remind everyone of what is at stake, but borne out of love that we have this fight.  (Applause.)

And I want to thank you, Liz Cheney, for reminding us that that, regardless of party affiliation, is a factor that binds us all.  And so, I thank you for your support and your leadership and your courage.  (Applause.)

I also want to thank all the other great leaders who are with us today.  Governor Tony Evers — (applause) — where is he?  There you are.  Thank you.

Mayor Grant, thank you for the warm welcome.  (Applause.)

I want to thank Senator Tammy Baldwin, who is traveling around the state — (applause) — but who I know you will reelect in November.  (Applause.)

Thank you, Sheriff Michek, for your support and your life of service to the people of Iowa County.  (Applause.) 

And so, I — I do want to say a bit more about Liz Cheney.  You all know her leadership, and she has obviously, and so importantly, been a leader for the people of Wyoming, but she has also been an extraordinary national leader and has served with great honor.  (Applause.) 

And she not only, as she has talked today, recognizes that character is among the most important attributes of leadership, but she also personifies that attribute.  And she possesses some of the qualities of character that I most respect in any individual and any leader: courage, especially at a moment like this, where there are so many powerful forces that have been intent on trying to demean and belittle and make people afraid. 

And there are many who know it is wrong, and then there are those who have the courage to speak out loudly about it and the conviction to speak truth.  And, you know, it is so admirable when anyone does it, and especially when it is difficult to do in an environment such as this.  But Liz Cheney really is a leader who puts country above party and above self, a true patriot — (applause) — and it is my profound honor — my profound honor to have your support.  (Applause.) 

And I also want to thank your father, Vice President Dick Cheney, for his support and — (applause) — and what he has done to serve our country. 

Every endorsement matters, and this endorsement matters a great deal, Liz.  And it carries the spicals — special significance, because, as you said, we may not see eye to eye on every issue, and we are going to get back to a healthy two-party system — I am sure of that — where we will have vigorous debates.  (Applause.) 

And as you said, you may not have — have supported a Democrat for president before, but as you have also said, we both love our country, and we revere our democratic ideals.  And we both also believe in the nobility of public service, and we know that our oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America is a sacred oath — an oath that must be honored and must never be violated.  (Applause.)

And your words today and the reason we are all here today, I think, really do underscore perhaps one of the most fundamental questions that is facing the American people in this election: Who will obey that oath?  Who will abide by the oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States of America?  (Applause.)

I have had the privilege — (laughs).

AUDIENCE:  Kamala!  Kamala!  Kamala!

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you. Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you. 

And I have sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution six times in my career, including as vice president, as a United States senator, and as the top law enforcement officer of the largest state in our country.  (Applause.)  Responsible for upholding and enforcing the laws of the state and the laws of the United States was the work I did.  And I have never wavered in upholding that oath, and I have always executed it faithfully and without reservation.  (Applause.)

And therein lies the profound difference between Donald Trump and me.

He, who violated the oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America.  And make no mistake: He, who if given the chance, would violate it again. 

Donald Trump lost the 2020 election.  (Applause.)  And as you have heard and know, he refused to accept the will of the people and the results of an election that was free and fair. 

As you have heard, he sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol, where they assaulted law enforcement officers.  He threatened the life of his own vice president and refused to engage in the peaceful transfer of power.

And let us be clear about how he intends to use power if elected again.  He has called for jailing journalists, political opponents, anyone he sees and deems as being an enemy.  He has pledged to destroy the independence of the Department of Justice, and he called for deploying our active-duty military against our own citizens.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Kristallnacht!  Weird!

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  He’s weird!

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  W- — I — well, I believe —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We’re not going back!

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  You and my running mate both.  (Laughing.)

Well, listen, I believe that anyone who recklessly tramples on our democratic values, as Donald Trump has; anyone who has actively and violently obstructed the will of the people and the peaceful transfer of power, as Donald Trump has; anyone who has called for, I quote, “termination” of the Constitution of the United States, as Donald Trump has, must never again stand behind the seal of the president of the United States.  (Applause.) 

Never again.  Never again.  (Applause.)

And the tragic truth — the tragic truth that we are facing in this election for president of the United States is that there is actually an honest question about whether one of the candidates will uphold the oath to the Constitution of the United States.  That is the tragic truth of this election, that this is actually an honest question that we are having as Americans.

And I know the vast majority of us agree that upholding the Constitution must be a basic requirement we expect of anyone seeking the highest office in the land.  I know the vast majority of us, regardless of your political party, agree we must hold sacred America’s fundamental principles — from the rule of law, to free and fair elections, to the peaceful transfer of power.  (Applause.)

And if you share — if you share that view, no matter your political party, there is a place for you with us and in this campaign, because those principles, I know, unite us across party lines.  And in this election, I take seriously my pledge to be a president for all Americans.

My entire career — (applause) — my entire career, I’ve only had one client: the people.  (Applause.)  And when I say that — and when I say that, I mean all the people, not just those who share my party affiliation. 

Through all my decades in law enforcement, I never asked a victim or a witness, “Are you a Republican or a Democrat?”  The only question I ever asked was, “Are you okay?”  And that is the kind of president we deserve, and I pledge to you that is the kind of president I will be.  (Applause.) 

Because the president of the United States must not look at our country through the narrow lens of ideology or petty partisanship or self-interest.  The president of the United States must not look at our country as an instrument for their own ambitions. 

Our nation is not some spoil to be won.  The United States of America is the greatest idea humanity ever devised — the nation that inspired the world to believe in the possibilities of a representative government.  And so, in the face of those who would endanger our magnificent experiment, people of every party must stand together.

And let me be clear: Democracy and freedom are not only at stake here at home; they are also at stake around the world.  As president of the United States, I will strengthen, not abdicate America’s global leadership.  (Applause.)

Last week, I met with Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy — (applause) — and the message I delivered was the same message I’ve shared with him every time I’ve seen him: I stand with Ukraine, and I always will.  (Applause.)

And I told him, as I have before, I want Ukraine to prevail.  By contrast, in our debate, Donald Trump couldn’t even bring himself to say he wanted Ukraine to win the war — couldn’t even bring himself to say that.

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  A war that Putin, a brutal dictator, launched against a free and independent people.  Trump wants to force Ukraine to give up its sovereign territory, a bedrock principle upon which we stand and fight for.  And you know who else wants them to give up their sovereign —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Putin!

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  — absolutely — territory.  (Laughter.)  Putin.  Putin.  And that’s not a plan for peace.  It’s a plan for surrender. 

Well, I believe that in the global struggle between tyranny and democracy, the president of the United States must always be on the side of freedom.  (Applause.)

So, we are gathered here today in Ripon, not far, as the congresswoman mentioned, from a small building where the Republican Party was born in 1854.  Liz Cheney stands in the finest tradition of its leaders.  (Applause.)  And if — and if people across Wisconsin and our nation are willing to do what Liz is doing to stand up for the rule of law, for our democratic ideals, and the Constitution of the United States, then together, I know we can chart a new way forward not as members of any one party but as Americans.  (Applause.)  Americans who are united — united in our devotion to the country we love. 

I thank you all.  May God bless you.  And may God bless the United States of America.  (Applause.) 

Thank you all.  Thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)                                END                 5:58 P.M. CDT