Harris holds first fundraiser as presumptive Democratic nominee: “We are the underdogs in this race”

Pittsfield, Massachusetts — Vice President Kamala Harris attended her first major fundraiser Saturday since becoming the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. 

Speaking to more than 800 attendees in Pittsfield, Massachusetts — mostly composed of Democratic donors — Harris made her campaign pitch and defended her record to that of her rival, former President Donald Trump. 

“As attorney general, I took on one of our country’s largest for-profit colleges that was scamming students,” Harris told the fundraiser’s attendees. “Well, Donald Trump ran a for-profit college that scammed students,” referencing the now defunct Trump University. In 2016, Trump agreed to pay $25 million to settle several civil lawsuits brought by former students. 

Harris also referred to the May 2023 civil verdict in which a New York jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s. 

“As a prosecutor I specialized in sexual abuse cases,” she said. “Well, Trump was found liable for committing sexual abuse.”

The vice president told her crowd she hopes Trump will agree to debate her. Prior to President Biden’s exit from the race — in the wake of the fallout over his performance in the first debate — the two had agreed to a second debate to take place Sept. 10 on ABC. Trump has said he would debate Harris, but has called for it to be hosted by Fox News. 

“You may have seen he just pulled out of our debates,” Harris said. “I hope he reconsiders. I hope he reconsiders. We have a lot to talk about.” 

Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said Thursday it could not schedule a debate with Harris as “Democrats very well could still change their minds” on their nominee.  

During the fundraiser, Harris also pledged to “finally pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act,” named after the late Georgia congressman and civil rights icon. The bill would restore a provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act which was eliminated by the Supreme Court.

Harris also committed to working to curb gun violence and advancing her fight for reproductive rights. 

“When Congress passes a law to restore reproductive freedom, as president of the United States, I will sign it into law,” she said. 

Harris acknowledged the success of her campaign in the first days since its launch, saying “momentum is on our side,” but also telling her donors that “we got to fight and we are the underdogs in this race.” The Harris campaign said this week it has raised more than $100 million since its launch. 

The fundraiser, benefiting the Harris Victory Fund, raised $1.4 million, according to a Harris campaign official, more than triple the initial $400,000 goal. The event marked the first major political event in the Berkshires since a visit from then first lady Michelle Obama in 2012. 

Pittsfield locals lined up outside of the Colonial Theater where the fundraiser was held, expressing enthusiasm over their city serving as a protagonist in the presidential race. 

Harris supporters held up banners reading “Girl Boss,” “first female president” and “if my cat could vote, she would vote for you,” a reference to recently-surfaced comments from Sen. JD Vance, the Republican vice presidential nominee, who claimed in a 2021 interview that 

the U.S. was being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies,” and specifically referenced Harris. 

“I firmly believe that it is past time to have a woman in charge and I just don’t want to go back,” said Patricia Labendz, a Pittsfield resident. “We are not going back. I grew up in the ’70s, and there was misogyny. A woman’s body is her body and nobody should be telling her what to do with it.”

Some residents were also there to show their support for Trump, holding large Trump flags, while a group of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered near the venue. 

“Stop playing both sides, pick a side to stand on and stand with it,” said Eyad Alkurabi, a Pittsfield local. “If you want to stand with the Palestinian people you need to stand 100%.”