PHOENIX — Vice President Kamala Harris said Thursday that former President Donald Trump‘s remarks this week about protecting women whether they “like it or not” is another sign of how he “devalues” women.
“His latest comment is just the most recent in a series of examples that we have seen from him in his words and deeds about how he devalues the ability of women to have the choice and the freedom to make decisions about their own body,” Harris told NBC News in an exclusive interview.
The vice president also argued that most Americans “believe that women are intelligent enough and should have and be respected for their agency to make decisions for themselves about what is in their best interest,” rather than the government or Trump “telling them what to do.”
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Harris’ remarks.
Trump on Wednesday said that his “people” had instructed him not to say that he wanted to “protect the women.”
“I said, ‘Well, I’m going to do it, whether the women like it or not.’ I’m going to protect them,” Trump said during his rally Wednesday in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
When reached for comment about his remarks Wednesday, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that Harris “may be the first woman Vice President but she has implemented dangerously liberal policies that have left women worse off financially and far less safe than we were four years ago under President Trump.”
“Women deserve a President who will secure our nation’s borders, remove violent criminals from our neighborhoods, and build an economy that helps our families thrive — and that’s exactly what President Trump will do,” Leavitt added.
Harris’ comments to NBC News came before her rally in Phoenix. Her next campaign stops on Thursday are in Nevada, where she will hold rallies in Reno and Las Vegas.
The Sun Belt blitz comes as polling indicates a neck-and-neck presidential race less than a week before Election Day.
Yamiche Alcindor reported from Phoenix, and Megan Lebowitz from Washington, D.C.
