Donald Trump seems to think he can win swing states by insulting their biggest cities—but Kamala Harris’ campaign aims to wield his own words against him in two new campaign ads.
The ads, titled “Philly vs. Trump” and “Milwaukee vs. Trump,” highlight how Trump called Milwaukee a “horrible city” and Philadelphia a place where “bad things happen.” But the ads don’t just fight back. They aim to rally their communities in support of Harris.
The Philadelphia ad features images of the Liberty Bell, fictional boxer Rocky Balboa in the ring, and Eagles fans hitting the streets after their team’s win in Super Bowl LII.
“Philly tough is different. They insult us, they don’t like us—we don’t care,” the ad says. “Because here’s the thing that people like Donald Trump don’t understand: We’re Philly, f-cking Philly, and when you fight us, we fight back. From 1776 to 4th and 26, so go ahead, talk whatever sh-t you want, Donald. We’re voting soon.”
The ad played during Sunday's Philadelphia Eagles football game. The Harris-Walz campaign has spent its final weeks traveling throughout Pennsylvania, arguably the most important battleground state in the presidential election.
The Milwaukee ad, narrated by Bucks head coach Doc Rivers, features images of the historic city, working-class neighborhoods, ironworkers' unions, Miller Beer headquarters, and construction sites.
“In this town, we’ve seen our share of hard times, heard our share of big promises,” Rivers says. “But empty promises don’t build cities. We do—with grit, sweat, and cold beer. So when [Trump] talks sh-t. We know talk is all he’s got.”
And let’s not forget Detroit. As Daily Kos reported, Harris released the searing ad “Like Detroit,” which shows images of the automotive city and its residents.
“They said we were dead, that our best days were behind us, that living here was like ‘living in hell,’ but you know what we said? We said f-ck that,” narrates actor Courtney B. Vance, a Detroit native.
“We rebuilt ourselves. We look out for each other. We got our hands dirty and put in the hard work,” Vance says, before cutting to an image of Trump golfing. “And this guy: [Trump] don’t know anything about that.”
The ad was in response to Trump insulting Detroit while speaking at the … Detroit Economic Club.
“Our whole country will end up being like Detroit if she's your president. You're going to have a mess on your hands,” Trump said.
On Friday, he doubled down on his criticism of the Motor City at a Michigan rally, saying, “When I sort of gave it a little knock, I said, ‘Let’s face it. We’ve been ripped in Detroit. We’ve got to make Detroit.’ They said, ‘he was disparaging,’ I’m not disparaging. I’m telling you the facts.”
On Nov. 5, here’s hoping Trump finds out that these cities are a force to be reckoned with.
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