JD Vance to campaign in Eau Claire the same day as Kamala Harris' battleground states tour
WASHINGTON – Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance plans to campaign in Eau Claire Wednesday — the same day Vice President Harris and her running mate will hold a rally in the western Wisconsin city.
Vance is scheduled to deliver remarks at Wollard International, an aviation ground equipment manufacturer, about 1 p.m. Central Time, according to his campaign. He is expected to attack the Biden administration's economic policies, which the Trump campaign labeled this week "woke" and "dangerously liberal."
The trip lands the same day Harris and her running mate, whom she is expected to select early this week, campaign in the blue western Wisconsin city as part of a battleground states tour. Harris as of Monday afternoon had not publicly announced her running mate, but top contenders include Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly.
Harris is also expected to deliver her remarks in the early afternoon Wednesday.
The move from Vance is intentional. The Ohio senator, named as former President Donald Trump's running mate during the Republican National Convention last month in Milwaukee, plans to make appearances in cities along Harris' battleground tour. Like Harris, Vance is scheduled to hold a rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday before heading to Eau Claire and Detroit on Wednesday and Raleigh, North Carolina, on Thursday, according to Politico.
Harris' campaign as of Monday afternoon did not say where in Eau Claire the vice president and her running mate plan to campaign. But a spokeswoman for the campaign said Vance's concurrent visit will offer a "clear split screen for Wisconsinites between two visions for the future."
"JD Vance’s visit to our state will only serve as a reminder of Donald Trump’s long record of failures and broken promises," said Kristi Johnston, the Wisconsin rapid response director for the Harris campaign. "Because of Trump, Wisconsin lost thousands of jobs, and his economic agenda incentivized companies to ship American jobs overseas."
Wednesday's stop would mark Vance's first official campaign rally in Wisconsin as Trump's running mate. The visit will be Harris' sixth stop in the state of 2024 and 10th since becoming vice president.
Late last month, Harris held her first campaign rally as Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee just outside Milwaukee.
Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman Brian Schimming in a statement said Vance's stop in Eau Claire will allow the party to "stand as one in bringing back security and prosperity to America and the world."
"At a time when Democratic policies are reaping nothing but chaos and despair at home and abroad, Wisconsin is ready to restore common sense and working-class values to the White House," Schimming said.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: JD Vance to campaign in Wisconsin same day as Kamala Harris
