trump supporter

WASHINGTON — The FBI has fired agents who were photographed kneeling during a racial justice protest in Washington that followed the 2020 murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, three people familiar with the matter said.

The bureau last spring had reassigned the agents but has since fired them, said the people, who insisted on anonymity to discuss personnel matters with the Associated Press. The number of FBI employees terminated was not immediately clear, but two people said it was roughly 20.

The photographs at issue showed a group of agents taking the knee during one of the demonstrations after the May 2020 killing of Floyd, a death that led to a national reckoning over policing and racial injustice and sparked widespread anger after millions of people saw video of the arrest. The kneeling had angered some in the FBI but was also understood as a possible deescalation tactic during a period of protests.

The FBI Agents Assn. confirmed in a statement late Friday that more than a dozen agents had been fired, including military veterans with additional statutory protections, and condemned the move as unlawful. It called on Congress to investigate and said the firings were another indication of FBI Director Kash Patel’s disregard for the legal rights of bureau employees.

“As Director Patel has repeatedly stated, nobody is above the law,” the agents association said. “But rather than providing these agents with fair treatment and due process, Patel chose to again violate the law by ignoring these agents’ constitutional and legal rights instead of following the requisite process.”

An FBI spokesman declined to comment Friday.

The firings come amid a broader personnel purge at the bureau as Patel works to reshape the nation’s premier federal law enforcement agency.

Five agents and top-level executives were known to have been summarily fired last month in a wave of ousters that current and former officials say has contributed to declining morale.

One of those, Steve Jensen, helped oversee investigations into the Jan. 6, 2021, riot by Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol. Another, Brian Driscoll, served as acting FBI director in the early days of the second Trump administration and resisted Justice Department demands to supply the names of agents who investigated Jan. 6.

A third, Chris Meyer, was incorrectly rumored on social media to have participated in the investigation into President Trump’s hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. A fourth, Walter Giardina, participated in high-profile investigations like the one of Trump advisor Peter Navarro.

A lawsuit filed by Jensen, Driscoll and another fired FBI supervisor, Spencer Evans, alleged that Patel communicated that he understood that it was “likely illegal” to fire agents based on cases they worked but was powerless to stop it because the White House and the Justice Department were determined to remove all agents who investigated Trump.

Patel denied at a congressional hearing last week taking orders from the White House on whom to fire and said anyone who has been fired failed to meet the FBI’s standards.

Trump, who was twice impeached and is the only U.S. president with a felony conviction, was indicted on multiple criminal charges in two felony cases. Both cases were dismissed after he was elected, following long-standing Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president.

Tucker writes for the Associated Press.

DES MOINES, Iowa — U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, an Iraq War combat veteran and Iowa’s first woman elected to Congress, is expected to announce next month she will not seek reelection, leaving another vacancy in an Iowa seat that could have ripple effects down the ballot as Democrats look to the state for pickup opportunities.

As Senate Republicans work to maintain their majority in the chamber, Ernst is joining a wave of her peers making headaches for the party. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina turned down a reelection bid after clashing with President Trump.

Ernst plans to announce in September that she will opt out of the race for a third term, according to three people familiar with her plans who spoke Friday on the condition of anonymity to preview the announcement.

Ernst, a former Army National Guard member and a retired lieutenant colonel, was first elected to an open Senate seat in 2014. She served for several years in the No. 3 spot in the Senate GOP leadership and was considered a vice presidential contender for Trump’s first White House run.

Her decision comes after Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, the state’s first female governor, said she would not run for reelection. It prompted the state’s many Republican elected officials to consider the open opportunity to run for higher office, a process that may begin again with Ernst’s departure.

Democrats have been looking for an opportunity to mount a political comeback in the once-competitive state, an uphill battle even in the potentially favorable midterm year. Ernst drew backlash after a retort about Medicaid cuts at a town hall. As Ernst explained that the legislation protects Medicaid for those who need it most, someone in the crowd yelled that people will die without coverage, and Ernst responded: “People are not … well, we all are going to die.”

The crowded primary field of Democratic candidates for the Senate have capitalized on that moment and Ernst’s Senate votes for early messaging. They’ll have to pivot once other Republicans enter the fray.

The election will be without an incumbent for the first time since 2014, when Ernst was elected in the first open Senate race in decades. Chuck Grassley, Iowa’s senior U.S. senator, has held his seat for 45 years.

Ernst emerged among a field of lesser-known candidates seeking the Republican nomination in 2014, rising to national recognition with advertisements that spoke of her experience slinging guns and castrating hogs. She won reelection in 2020 by more than six percentage points, coming in with just shy of 52% of voters.

Among Trump supporters, Ernst made waves earlier this year after signaling a hesitance to support his pick for the secretary of the Department of Defense, Pete Hegseth. Hegseth has said in the past that he did not think women should serve in combat roles, and he was accused of a sexual assault that he denies.

But Ernst, who is herself a survivor of sexual assault and has worked to improve how the military handles claims of misconduct, made clear she wanted to hear him respond to those points. It provoked a pressure campaign that underscored Trump’s power on Capitol Hill and included threats of a bruising primary.

It wasn’t the first time Ernst went toe to toe with Trump supporters. She also faced condemnation for her 2022 vote to protect same-sex marriage.

Still, Ernst would have benefited from nearly 200,000 more active voters registered as Republicans than Democrats, a significant shift from even a few years ago. Ernst announced a campaign manager in June, an October date for her annual fundraiser and had raised just shy of $1.8 million in the first half of the year.

Several Democrats are seeking the party’s nomination for the seat, including state Sen. Zach Wahls; state Rep. Josh Turek; Jackie Norris, chair of the Des Moines School Board; and Nathan Sage, a former chamber of commerce president.

Two Republicans — former state Sen. Jim Carlin and veteran Joshua Smith — had already entered the primary to challenge Ernst.

Kim, Fingerhut and Cappelletti write for the Associated Press. Kim and Cappelletti reported from Washington.

Supporters of President Trump and counter-protesters converged in West Hollywood and Beverly Hills on Sunday in a small but raucous confrontation that included a performance from a pro-Trump punk rock icon and remarks from a disgraced ex-congressman.

At a rally aimed at encouraging voters to leave the Democratic Party, former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz portrayed the Republican Party as “patriotic and joyful” while denigrating the opposition as “angry and lonely.”

“They are the movement that allowed this great state to burn,” Gaetz said. “They are the movement that turned what was paradise over to the homeless and illegal aliens.”

Gaetz, currently hosting a political news show for One America News Network from San Diego, had stepped down from his congressional seat after Trump nominated him to be the nation’s attorney general. The nomination sparked controversy because Gaetz was previously under investigation by the Department of Justice for allegations of child sex trafficking. After a long-running probe, prosecutors did not file charges.

Matt Gaetz spoke Sunday at a Beverly Hills rally that aimed to persuade Democrats to drop their party registration and join Republicans.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Gaetz ultimately withdrew himself from consideration for the attorney general post. In December, the House Ethics Committee reported that it had found evidence that he abused drugs and paid for sex, including with a minor, while serving in Congress.

Gaetz’s scandal-ridden history went unmentioned at the rally Sunday, where he beckoned those disaffected with the left to join Republicans.

“If you come to our side,” he told a few hundred attendees, “we will welcome you with a patriotic embrace.”

Though tense at times, the rally, dubbed the “American Restoration Tour,” was largely peaceful, with the exception of a small fight and an arrest. Private security guards tackled a man who appeared to be wearing a kilt and yelling. He appeared to be handcuffed by police officers as Trump supporters chanted “U.S.A.”

One person was arrested at the rally on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, said Beverly Hills police Sgt. Richard Billingsley, although it was unclear if it was the same individual seen detained by officers. No additional details about the incident were available Sunday evening.

Members of the #WalkAway movement rallied Sunday in West Hollywood, urging others to leave the Democratic Party.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

The rally was held in Beverly Gardens Park, a lush green space that runs parallel to Santa Monica Boulevard and has been the site of frequent demonstrations in support of Trump. Although much of the affluent Westside skews liberal, Beverly Hills is home to neighborhoods that repeatedly voted for Trump.

Shiva Bagheri, the organizer of some pro-Trump gatherings there in 2020, told the crowd that she fled Iran because of the impact of “radical Islam” on the nation. Bagheri said she voted for President Obama, but the “bubble was popped” because he gave “boatloads of cash to Iran.”

A through-line of the roughly two-hour rally were speakers like Bagheri: former liberals who felt disenfranchised by the Democratic Party and became full-throated Trump supporters.

Actress Natalie Beisner, who voted for Hillary Clinton and Obama, said the pandemic shutdowns made her rethink her political views. Beisner said that due to the shutdowns, she lost two jobs and her grandmother died alone, while at the same time, protesters prompted by the death of George Floyd could gather en mass. When she raised such concerns, Beisner said she was called racist and selfish.

“These people refused to acknowledge that I might have an honest reason for disagreeing with them. There was no conversation,” she said. “So I walked away from the Democrat Party because for the first time in my life, I connected my suffering directly to Democrat policies.”

Before the rally, which was organized by the creator of the #WalkAway social media campaign encouraging voters to leave the Democratic Party, Trump supporters gathered in the heart of the LGBTQ+ community in West Hollywood to march into Beverly Hills.

As diners along Santa Monica Boulevard brunched on patios and took in a drag queen performance, several dozen pro-Trump marchers chanted, “Walk away from hate.”

Anti-Trump protesters and members of the #WalkAway movement confronted one another Sunday in West Hollywood.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

A slightly larger number of counter-protesters had gathered nearby, yelling, “No KKK! No fascist USA! No Trump!”

A West Hollywood resident who went by the name Anniejump came with a loud speaker and pink bandannas. She called the group “bigots” who came to the community of West Hollywood “to attack queers.”

“Anybody who doesn’t like fascists wants them out of town,” Anniejump said.

But the LGBTQ+ community is not monolithic in its political views.

Hunter Gibson, a 29-year-old gay man, told The Times that he felt that in places like West Hollywood, “if you don’t think a certain way, you’re ostracized.” Conservative groups, he said, were more open to dialogue.

At the rally, several speakers focused on the transgender community. After the event, Brandon Straka, a gay man and the founder of the #WalkAway campaign behind Sunday’s event, expressed concern about transitioning by underage people.

Brandon Straka, the founder of #WalkAway, marches in West Hollywood on Sunday as part of a campaign to persuade Democrats to join the Republican Party.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Straka was pardoned by Trump in January after being convicted of misdemeanor disorderly conduct for taking part in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

“I think you can be pro-transgender and also recognize that there’s a culture that’s too permissive, that’s turning people into permanent victims, especially people who are not actually transgender,” he said in an interview.

Cherie Currie, the former lead singer of the Runaways, sang “Cherry Bomb” at the rally.

The 1976 song was a subversive celebration of female sexuality and rejection of the patriarchy by an all-female band. Currie has since become a supporter of the “Gays Against Groomers” movement.

Gov. Gavin Newsom headed to the Central Valley on Thursday to tout his forthcoming jobs plan, saying California’s economic might was “cold comfort” to regions that feel like they don’t fully participate in the state’s muscular output.

The substance of the governor’s announcement was incremental. But the set piece — a liberal politician standing in front of heavy machinery, talking blue-collar jobs in a county that backed President-elect Donald Trump on Nov. 5 — appeared to be a response to the election, in which Democrats took a drubbing after critics said they were out of touch on economic issues.

“Some people talk about, ‘This economy is booming, inflation is cooling, lowest unemployment in our lifetimes. …’ All that may be true, but people don’t feel that way. They feel like the economy is not supportive,” Newsom said in an appearance at a Fresno community college, identifying that gap as a “point of emphasis” in the election.

Newsom characterized the work in places like the West Fresno campus’ apprenticeship program as an “antidote” to that economic disconnect.

During the last Trump administration, Newsom burnished his national profile by casting himself as a crusading foil to the then-president. He revisited those skirmishes in the days after the 2024 election, announcing a special session of the Legislature to prepare for potential Republican-led attacks on abortion rights, environmental protections and disaster funding.

The governor sounded some of those same notes while fielding questions Thursday, saying that Trump broke the law and “vandalized our progress” last time he was president.

But Newsom also walked a careful line, positing that he had worked more closely with Trump early in the COVID-19 pandemic than any other Democratic governor had, and saying that he didn’t care how his own constituents had voted.

“I care about Trump supporters. I care about RFK Jr. supporters. I care about Tucker Carlson supporters. I care about Charlie Kirk supporters. I care about Ben Shapiro supporters. I care about all people,” said Newsom, a Democrat who is widely seen as a potential contender in the 2028 presidential contest.

Hours before he spoke in Fresno, the governor’s political action committee, Campaign for Democracy, sent out an email to supporters, seeking feedback on “the steps Democrats need to take in order to claw back some of these losses in the next election and beyond.”

In a New York Times interview, Newsom said that he would soon be visiting deep-red Kern and Colusa counties, which are also in the Central Valley, and that he understood the message being sent by voters worried about their economic future.

Democratic political strategist Andrew Acosta said Newsom should have taken a clue from the mixed results in his own reelection in 2022.

“To me, there was a message sent two years ago when he lost in a lot of these same places by pretty substantial margins to a Republican who didn’t really run much of a race,” Acosta said.

Acosta noted that Newsom’s record had been used by supporters of GOP Rep. John Duarte in advertisements against Democratic challenger Adam Gray in the Central Valley’s nail-biter battle for California’s 13th Congressional District, which remains too close to call.

The governor seemed keenly aware Thursday that Californians — regardless of whether they lean red and listen to “The Ben Shapiro Show” or keep the radio dial in their Prius tuned to the airwaves of NPR — share a common concern: the cost of living in an extraordinarily expensive state.

A survey conducted in mid-October by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California pinpointed the economy, including jobs and the cost of living, as the most pressing issue for state residents.

Those results held across geographic, party and demographic lines. But Central Valley residents had a particularly grim view of the state’s economic outlook, with more than two-thirds of respondents saying they foresaw bad times ahead in the next year. Central Valley residents were also the least likely to see hope on the more distant California horizon, with under 1 in 3 saying they thought the state was headed in the right direction, according to the Public Policy Institute’s survey.

Newsom said the seed of inspiration for his jobs plan was sown when he was lieutenant governor, and saw how the California dream had frayed in many places.

“I felt like coastal parts of the state were doing well, but at the end of the day, there was a different story that was being told all across the state,” he said.

The governor laid out the structure for his upcoming “California Jobs First Economic Blueprint,” which will be released in full early next year.

The San Francisco-bred politician has made a habit of sojourning to more conservative swaths of California after major elections.

In 2019, on his first full day in office, Newsom toured areas with a high fire risk in Placer County, a historically red section of Northern California‘s Gold Country. And he held a news conference with his wife in Fresno County shortly after winning reelection in 2022.

It was a classic fall Saturday in L.A. — sunny and 75 degrees — but about 30 Angelenos were glued to their screens.

Actor Bradley Whitford was Zooming in from New York to address members of Swing Left Los Feliz, a local chapter of the national progressive advocacy organization. The topic of the former “West Wing” star and vocal Democrat’s remarks: Election anxiety.

Concern over the outcome of the upcoming Nov. 5 vote is inevitable. The question is how to minimize the stress.

For some people, that looks like long yoga sessions, activating airplane mode and lots of hot tea. For others, talking it out is the best approach. In Los Angeles, there are many characteristically creative options to help stave off the existential despair, such as self-tapping workshops, guzzling cold-pressed juices and special taco deals.

Many of those who tuned in to see Whitford speak have been furiously phone-banking and knocking on doors for the Harris-Walz campaign and down-ballot Democratic candidates, hoping they can help turn the electoral tide blue.

The alternative — a red wave that carries former President Trump back to the White House — is an outcome many left-leaning Americans dread. Conservatives, meanwhile, are feeling a similar unease over the prospect of a Kamala Harris presidency. And there are data to prove it.

The American Psychological Assn. released polling earlier this month showing that worry over the election was a top stressor for U.S. adults. According to the group’s report, which included a survey conducted by the Harris Poll, 77% of respondents identified “the future of our nation” as a significant source of stress.

“It’s like when you get an MRI or a blood test and you have to wait for the results,” said Dr. Lynn Bufka, a clinical psychologist and deputy chief of professional practice at the APA. “During that time period it seems we have great potential to imagine all sorts of worst-case scenarios.”

As Sara Laufer, a nervous progressive who watched the Oct. 26 live stream with Whitford, said, “[I’m] focusing on what I can control, which are my emotions. And it’s not going to be an easy stretch.”

And, as Whitford reminded some of L.A.’s most dedicated partisans, there is still time to change people’s minds.

“I know the polls are absolutely terrifying, but if we get people out” to vote, Harris will win, Whitford said. “Not only is action the antidote to anxiety and despair, it really is truly making a difference.”

*****

As decision day draws near, many Americans become fixated on their hyperactive social media feeds.

The omnipresence of the Internet and social media in recent electoral cycles has allowed people to curate high-volume echo chambers where the most extreme electoral claims are amplified, driving fears ever higher.

James Long, a political science professor at the University of Washington, called the level of election anxiety this year “unprecedented,” even compared with 2016 and 2020.

That’s partly because of the compounding effects of misinformation and social media — and partly because people are more worried about the threat of post-election violence in the aftermath of the insurrection by a mob of Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

“Now it’s like waiting for a train to crash and seeing who survives,” Long said.

According to the APA report, 56% of adults said they believe the presidential election “could be the end of democracy in the U.S.”

That kind of anxiety can have serious physical and mental health consequences, according to Judson Brewer, a professor at Brown University’s School of Public Health.

“People lose sleep, people waste time, anxiety can raise people’s blood pressure, it affects people’s relationships — there’s all sorts of things,” he said.

As for democracy, it’s already underway, one vote at a time.

At a mobile voting center outside the Lawndale Library on a recent afternoon, foot traffic was light and there were no lines. With two large tents shading a ballot dropbox, five voting machines, and tablets to register to vote, the center is one of several touring the county through election day.

Angela Monge, 54, of Norwalk, said she is “worried about what will happen after the election.”

For Monge, a longtime TSA worker at Los Angeles International Airport, the image of Trump supporters storming the Capitol was still fresh in her mind.

“I remember that day,” she said.

While some Americans fear Trump’s policies on abortion, taxes and immigration, Bufka, the APA psychologist, said polling shows existential concern among supporters of both presidential candidates.

Many on either side of the political divide harbor deeply negative feelings about the opposition, which Bufka summed up as follows: “I can’t believe the candidate I don’t like is being elected, because how could you possibly believe that is a reasonable candidate for the presidency?”

Trump supporter Clarence Chapell of Gardena said in Lawndale this week that he’s most concerned about what will happen if Harris loses.

“If it’s a close election, that’s when a lot of conspiracies might come out,” the retiree said. “I think if it’s on the left side there could be a lot of violence … because of all that ‘If Trump’s elected there won’t be a democracy anymore and we’ll have fascism’ – all that bullcrap.”

*****

In a city known for ennui and ego — and an outsized share of America’s influencers — there are plenty of ways Angelenos can try to exorcise their election anxiety while still striking an artful pose for Instagram with a juice or taco in hand.

Pressed Juicery, which has 19 locations in the L.A. area, has not marketed any products as balms for election anxiety and stress. Nonetheless, two items — the Calm shot and Unwind tonic — have seen sales increases of at least 28% in October compared with the same month last year. (Reporter’s stress level after consumption: unchanged.)

“The general zeitgeist is doing the marketing for us,” said Andrei Najjar, Pressed’s senior vice president of brand and marketing. “There is clearly something going on.” That something, he believes, is the election.

Kreation Organic Juicery, with 23 locations in the L.A. area, has also seen a marked increase in sales of two juices claimed to relieve stress — though the company, like Pressed, has not explicitly marketed them for election anxiety relief.

Nikki Rahimian, Kreation’s in-house nutritionist, said sales of Destress and Hemp-Ade juices over the last two months are up about 30% compared with a year ago.

“Without us even having to do anything, we have seen a rise in sales of those two items,” said Rahimian, adding that it was “probably” due to people’s election stress. “It’s too much of a coincidence.”

The Hemp-Ade includes hemp oil, which Rahimian said “has been proven to calm the nervous system and chill you out.” As for the Destress juice, it is the hue of bubblegum and tastes slightly of, well, bubblegum. (Reporter’s stress level after consumption: unchanged.)

If juice doesn’t sound hearty enough, HomeState, the Texas-inflected taco chain with eight locations in Southern California, is rolling out a $70 “Election Night Survival Taco Kit.”

HomeState founder Briana Valdez said the kit, available all day on Nov. 5, was born out of a desire to provide customers with “an element of fun on a night which might otherwise be stressful.” Though the offering comes at “a really serious moment,” she said, “the next day, no matter what happens, you still have leftovers in the fridge.”

*****

While some Angelenos fill their stomachs to calm their nerves, proponents of the “Emotional Freedom Technique” take the edge off by executing a series of esoteric stress-relief exercises.

On Saturday, Alex Brown, founder of the health and wellness brand Good Active, is hosting “Release & Regulate: An EFT and Shadow Work Workshop” in Santa Monica. The event is billed as an opportunity to “regulate your nervous system and release limiting beliefs” ahead of election day.

Attendees will strive to achieve that by pressing or tapping certain places on their bodies and by diving “deep into the shadow parts of themselves,” according to Brown.

“I personally, and many of the people I surround myself with, have expressed feelings of anxiety going into this election. … That was our reason for creating this event: to create a space and a moment of peace for our community,” she said.

Forums convened for the purpose of sharing and managing feelings of election anxiety have cropped up across the country over the past few weeks. Book clubs are dedicating meetings to the topic, churches are opening their doors for community coping gatherings, and employers are hosting group listening sessions.

David Dunning, a psychology professor at the University of Michigan, suggests anyone who’s struggling with negative mental health impacts related to the election — such as anxiety, irritability or excessive rumination — take a break from election-related media and activities. Instead of doomscrolling or studying the latest polls, people should consider exercising, enjoying nature and hobbies, or socializing with friends.

“We can take time out to remember the other things that are important in life … and we can step aside from social media and the TV and the newspaper,” he said. “It’s time to get out of the rabbit hole and take an intermission.”

Did President Biden just call former President Trump’s supporters — nearly half the American electorate — “garbage”?

That’s what it sounded like he said in an interview Tuesday, and Republicans have been hammering him for doing so. But Biden said it’s not what he meant, that he was just denouncing “hateful rhetoric.” His team has pushed back on the reading of his words — even as they acknowledge he stumbled over them.

Will Biden’s remarks matter to voters in a race that he is not running in, which he in fact dropped out of in part because he sometimes appears befuddled when speaking, and in which Trump has routinely made similar and worse remarks about America as a whole and about various subgroups within the electorate?

Republicans say it should; Democrats say that’s absurd.

During an interview Tuesday about Trump’s recent Madison Square Garden rally, which was marked by a series of racist and incendiary remarks by Trump and others, Biden took aim at a particularly bad joke in which comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.”

“They’re good, decent, honorable people,” Biden said of Puerto Ricans. “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American. It’s totally contrary to everything we’ve done.”

At least, that’s what it sounded like Biden said — and what many observers understood him to say.

Immediately, Republicans jumped on the remarks as a rebuke of nearly half the nation by a sitting president, a gaffe akin to the one Hillary Clinton made during the 2016 race, when she referred to many of Trump’s backers as a “basket of deplorables.”

It was another example, to their minds, of Democrats showing disdain to average Americans, flying in the face of Vice President Kamala Harris’ message of unity and of bringing the nation together in the face of Trump’s routinely divisive rhetoric.

Biden and the White House immediately went into damage control and sought to clarify his remarks.

“Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump’s supporter at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage — which is the only word I can think of to describe it,” Biden wrote. “His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable. That’s all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don’t reflect who we are as a nation.”

Biden’s team also offered a different transcript that suggested the quote was “supporter’s,” not “supporters,” as in, “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporter’s” — which they suggested was a direct rebuke of one supporter in particular: Hinchcliffe.

Harris too tried to tamp down the criticism. She noted that Biden had clarified his remarks, but also distanced herself from them.

“Listen, I think, first of all, he clarified his comments, but let me be clear: I strongly disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for,” she said.

Harris has tried to walk a fine line with Biden for months, touting his administration’s accomplishments while also saying she would be her own kind of leader. She has tried to cast herself as representing a new generation of leadership — a nod to the fact that she is 60 years old, while Biden is 81 and Trump is 78.

She has also been trying to court Republicans to her camp, particularly in swing states where she and Trump are in extremely tight races and need every vote they can get.

Biden, who has always had a stutter, has clearly lost an additional step in his rhetorical powers in recent years. He exited the presidential race after appearing so befuddled in a July debate against Trump that many in the country began to question his mental acuity and his ability to lead. His stumbling through his remarks about Trump’s supporters are just the latest example of words getting the better of him — despite his swift clarification.

Harris supporters have criticized media coverage of the dustup as out of proportion, especially in light of the fact that Trump routinely uses similarly derogatory language. He recently referred to the U.S. as a whole as “a dumping ground,” saying, “We’re like a garbage can for the world.”