If one state could represent the current status of the presidential election, it may just be Georgia.
The race in the Peach State remains virtually tied, with both candidates polling well within the margin of error. Now with less than two weeks until the election, both campaigns are barnstorming the battleground, hosting back-to-back events in the state the decided the 2020 election.
“The fate of our nation will be in your hands,” Trump told supporters. “Georgia, you have to stand up and tell Kamala [Harris]… you’re fired.”
Earlier in the day, Trump attended a “Believers and Ballots” faith town-hall where he spoke about the need for Christians to get out and vote, especially evangelicals — who he argued need to turn out in higher percentages.
“If you look over the last 30 years or so, for whatever reason, Christians are not tremendous voters in terms of percentage, if they were, would never lose an election,” Trump said. “We wouldn't have had these people in office. We would never lose an election."
"I think we've really energized a lot of people this time because they've seen how bad it is," he said.
Faith was a big topic for speakers at the Duluth rally, too.
“We have 12 days left and you need to lovingly challenge pastors that are silent,” said Charlie Kirk, president of the youth-focused conservative group Turning Point USA, a sponsor of the event. He went on to say churchgoing individuals had a “biblical obligation” to support Trump, describing his ascendance in politics as “a series of events that only God could orchestrate.”
For voters in attendance at the rally, the top issues remained immigration and the economy.
“I really have felt terrible [with] what's happened the last several years, and I just wanted to show support for our country,” Laura Britton of Forsyth County told Scripps News.
Ana Maria Collantes, a small business owner who recently voted early, told Scripps News, “ I've seen people, you know, struggling over how much they can spend, and that stinks, because, you know, it didn't used to be that way, very short time ago.”
The high-profile lineup, which utilized firework flares as speakers were introduced, often to standing ovations, included conservative host Tucker Carlson (who highlighted tonight was the first time he spoke at a political rally), former Democratic representative turned Republican Tulsi Gabbard, as well as Democrat turned Independent turned Trump-supporter Robert Kennedy Jr.
Also present was former Trump administration trade advisor Peter Navarro, who was released from prison this past summer after serving a four- month sentence for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The Capitol riot was also highlighted during remarks from Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga), who told the audience, "if you walked through open doors on Jan 6., Trump is only one who will pardon those people."
Many in attendance were wearing clothes highlighting Trump’s status as a convicted felon for violating New York financial regulations, donning shirts that included taglines such as "I’m voting for the Outlaw" or "I’m voting for the Convicted Felon."
With early voting underway since Oct. 15, more than two million Georgians have already cast their ballots — a new record.
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Vice President Kamala Harris, for her part, will rally supporters in Atlanta Thursday night, where she’ll be joined by former President Barack Obama and rock sensation Bruce Springsteen.
And Wednesday evening, her campaign announced Harris will deliver a “closing argument” speech next Tuesday on the Ellipse at National Mall — the same spot Trump gave the speech many believe inspired the Jan. 6 riots.
There, Harris will paint a picture for Americans of what a second Trump term might look like, a senior Harris campaign official told Scripps News, hoping to crystallize the choice for Americans one week before election day.
In remarks earlier Wednesday, Harris lambasted her opponent as “increasingly unhinged and unstable,” going on to highlight comments from Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly, who recently announced he believes the former president is a fascist.
“This is a window into who Donald Trump really is, from the people who know him best,” Harris said.
