Sawt Falasteen - Trump trash talks Harris as Democrat fends off 'garbage' fallout

Harris had hoped to spend the day expanding on the final-week "closing argument" she made at a huge Washington rally the night before -- but found herself instead disavowing Biden's remark that appeared to label Trump supporters "garbage."

Ever the showman, Trump was on hand to exploit the misstep with a photo op, climbing into the cabin of a "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN" garbage truck waiting for him at an airport in Wisconsin and answering questions from reporters.

The row started over the weekend when a warm-up speaker at a Trump rally called the US territory of Puerto Rico "a floating island of garbage," in remarks that initially put the Republican campaign on the defensive.

Yet Biden's gaffe then provided Trump the opportunity to play the victim.

"How do you like my garbage truck? This truck is in honor of Kamala and Joe Biden," said Trump, who was not asked about his own repeated references to America as a "garbage can" for the world.

Harris traveled to North Carolina and onward to Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, focusing again on three of seven battleground states that could determine who wins the closest election in modern US history.

Trump was also in North Carolina on Wednesday -- in the town of Rocky Mount, about an hour's drive from Harris's Raleigh rally -- before he headed to Wisconsin.

More than 57 million have already cast their ballots via early or mail-in voting, over a third of the 2020 total.

- 'Unstable, obsessed' -

Trump -- who has 34 felony convictions for crimes of dishonesty connected to the 2016 election -- is expected to reject Tuesday's result if he loses, and the Republican is already seizing on commonplace verification processes by election officials to amplify his claims of widespread "cheating."

Harris fended off questions about Biden's gaffe, which came when the president reacted to a comedian at a Trump rally referring to Puerto Rico as "a floating island of garbage."

"The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters," Biden said, before the White House sought to clarify that he was referring to Trump's rhetoric, not to his supporters.

"Let me be clear, I strongly disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for," said Harris, Biden's vice president.

At his Rocky Mount rally, Trump said Biden had "finally said what he and Kamala really think of our supporters," adding that they were "low-lifes."

In North Carolina, Harris hammered home her campaign's message to "turn the page" on former president Trump, leading the crowd in chants of "we are not going back!"

"This is someone who is unstable, obsessed with revenge, consumed with grievance and out for unchecked power," said Harris.

- 'Cheating' claims

In Washington, Harris had spoken at the very spot where Trump stirred up a mob that went on to attack the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 in a violent attempt to keep him in power even though he lost the 2020 election to Biden.

On Wednesday, Trump took to social media to repeat his claims of voter fraud, appearing to set the stage for a repeat performance around the unfounded claim that his 2020 loss to Biden was rigged.

He denounced what he said was "cheating" at "large-scale levels never seen before" in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania.

At his North Carolina rally, Trump again cast doubt on the fairness of voting machines and called for a return to paper ballots.

His campaign on Wednesday made a fresh plea for campaign donations by referencing Biden's comments.

But one person who will not be voting for Trump on November 5 will be actor and former Republican governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger, who endorsed Harris.

"Rejecting the results of an election is as un-American as it gets," he said of Trump.

Inflation and the economy have been key issues this election, and on Wednesday new data showed solid economic growth solid despite a slight slowdown.

P.Tamimi--SF-PST