Campaigns for Trump and Harris Full Steam Ahead After Conventions

With the pomp and circumstance of both political party conventions in the rearview mirror, the campaigns of Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are finally beginning to speak more about the specifics of their platforms heading into the election.

Here is a look at the leading political headlines over the past week in the U.S.

Harris Team Announces Record Fundraising as They Spend Time in Georgia

Officials with Harris' team announced last weekend that they have brought in approximately $540 million in campaign funding in just one month. Harris' team said that this number represents a record for any campaign in the history of the country. The campaign is also encouraged that grassroots donations increased substantially during the Democratic National Convention last week, bringing in a total of $82 million during this time frame.

Harris and her vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, spent a few days this week on a bus tour throughout the state of Georgia. The tour ended with a rally in Savannah on Thursday. The campaign is targeting the southern part of the Peach State, hoping to make a dent into some of the Republican strongholds to help put them over the top.

Trump Visits Battleground States

While Harris and Walz spent a great deal of the week in Georgia, Trump took a tour of some of the swing states in the Upper Midwest. Trump spoke at the National Guard Association’s conference in Detroit on Monday. The former president traveled to both Michigan and Wisconsin on Thursday. He ended the week with a rally in Pennsylvania followed by an event at the Moms for Liberty annual convention in the nation's capital on Friday evening.

Former presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard endorsed Trump on Monday during a speech at an event in Detroit. Gabbard was also with Trump earlier in the day Monday during the controversial visit to Arlington National Cemetery.

It is being reported that Gabbard is assisting Trump with his debate prep. The much-anticipated presidential debate is set to take place on September 10.

Special Counsel Jack Smith Files Updated Indictments

Special counsel Jack Smith filed a new set of indictments against Trump this week, bringing the election subversion case back into the headlines. Smith filed the updated list of indictments on Tuesday with the goal of making it past the U.S. Supreme Court this time. The top court had previously said that the former president had immunity from the charges.

The revised indictment was shortened from the original filing of 45 pages to just 36 pages. Prosecutors also removed the section regarding Trump's actions to lean on the power of the Department of Justice to swing the 2020 presidential election in his favor. Also, the updated indictment notably removed any references to "co-conspirator 4."

Army Responds to Incident at Arlington National Cemetery

Trump and his team drew the ire of some veterans groups earlier in the week after a visit to Arlington National Cemetery. The former president was visiting the sacred site to commemorate the three-year anniversary of the tragedy at Kabul airport's Abbey Gate in Afghanistan that resulted in the deaths of 13 U.S. service members. Trump's campaign team posted a video of the visit on their official TikTok, a violation of the cemetery's rules to use the site as a campaign prop.

The U.S. Army responded by issuing a statement on Thursday, saying that the participants with Trump's group knew about the federal laws that banned political activity at the cemetery. The formal statement also called out a member of the campaign team for pushing aside a worker at Arlington. An Army spokesperson said that the incident was reported to the police department at the Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, however, the employee did not want to press charges.

Trump Tries to Clarify Position on Abortion

It was a tough week for Trump when it came to clarifying his position on abortion rights. On Thursday, Trump made the surprise announcement that he would mandate that the government or insurance companies provide coverage for in-vitro fertilization treatments (IVF) if he returns to the White House. Just one day later, Trump said that he will vote no on a measure in Florida supporting abortion rights. A no vote on this measure would lay the groundwork for the state to institute an abortion ban after six weeks.

Trump made the comments about his no vote during a Friday interview with Fox News. Florida is Trump's recognized state of residence, meaning that he gets to vote on this controversial measure. Prior to formally stating his position, Trump had been going back and forth on the issue of abortion in an effort to try to placate moderate voters that are not entirely on board with an abortion ban. For instance, he refused to commit to a federal nationwide abortion ban when asked by Fox News on Friday.

What is Coming Up Next

There will be little rest for the candidates heading into the Labor Day weekend. Harris' team confirmed that Walz will campaign on Monday by speaking at the Milwaukee Area Labor Council’s Laborfest 2024 event. This visit will mark the third time that Walz' has traveled to Wisconsin since getting the nod from Harris to serve as her running mate.

The Harris campaign is leaning into using Walz when speaking to union workers and laborers. Walz gave a speech earlier in the week at a firefighters union convention in Boston. This followed an event earlier in the month speaking at a government employees union event in Los Angeles.

President Joe Biden will campaign alongside Harris on Labor Day at an event in Pittsburgh. This appearance in the Keystone State will be the first time that the duo has campaigned together in a crucial swing state since Biden exited the race at the end of July.

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