On Wednesday, Vice President Kamala Harris held a campaign event about reproductive freedoms in Jacksonville, FL.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 [APPLAUSE]
00:09 Good afternoon, everyone.
00:10 What a wonderful crowd.
00:15 What energy.
00:16 [APPLAUSE]
00:23 That was not on my speech, though.
00:26 My name is Dr. Shelly Tian.
00:29 Today, it is my honor to introduce Vice President Kamala
00:33 Harris.
00:33 [APPLAUSE]
00:39 A fearless and unwavering voice for reproductive rights
00:42 for our communities.
00:45 I have never been more proud to say
00:47 that I am an obstetrician, gynecologist, maternal fetal
00:50 medicine specialist, and provider of abortion care.
00:53 [APPLAUSE]
01:01 I care for patients in Florida, Arizona, and Kansas.
01:05 Today, I want to uplift the health care workers who
01:09 have been working tirelessly and compassionately to provide
01:13 services despite unprecedented attacks on reproductive
01:17 freedom.
01:19 Here in Florida, a six-week near total abortion ban
01:23 goes into effect today.
01:26 This ban takes effect before most patients even
01:30 realize they are pregnant.
01:33 As a physician, I can tell you that with today's ban here
01:36 in Florida, we will only see more dire consequences
01:41 to the health and well-being of our communities.
01:45 Across the country, we have already
01:47 witnessed the horrifying consequences
01:50 of denying access to safe abortion care.
01:56 Those are the stakes of this election.
01:59 Will we all have access to safe, compassionate care?
02:03 Or will Donald Trump continue to take away our rights?
02:07 [BOOING]
02:12 That is why I am proud to introduce
02:15 a courageous, outspoken leader who has continually supported
02:19 science, compassion, and reproductive health
02:23 care as a human right, Vice President Kamala Harris.
02:27 [CHEERING]
02:31 The Vice President has been a passionate and fearless voice
02:39 for reproductive freedom.
02:41 Since the Dobbs decision, she and President Biden
02:45 have been leading a whole-of-government effort
02:48 to advocate for our rights.
02:50 Vice President Harris has traveled across the country
02:53 to see firsthand the devastation this decision has brought
02:58 and has been outspoken for reproductive health care.
03:03 As someone who has committed her life
03:06 to the wonderful practice of medicine,
03:09 I know that by electing leaders such as President Biden
03:14 and Vice President Harris, we can work together
03:17 to restore and protect our fundamental freedoms.
03:22 It is such a tremendous honor and privilege
03:26 to welcome the Vice President of the United States of America,
03:30 Kamala Harris.
03:31 [CHEERING]
03:35 [APPLAUSE]
03:38 We're so good.
03:50 We're so good.
03:51 We're going to do other things together, aren't we?
03:53 We are.
03:53 We are.
03:54 Absolutely.
03:54 Thank you.
03:55 Bye, everyone.
03:56 [CHEERING]
04:00 Hello.
04:01 Hello.
04:02 Good afternoon, everyone.
04:03 Can we please give it up for Dr. Tian?
04:05 [CHEERING]
04:08 I had the chance to spend some time with her this afternoon,
04:14 and I thanked her for her courage
04:17 and for the work that she and her colleagues
04:20 are doing at this critical time in our country
04:24 in the midst of this critical health care crisis.
04:27 She has been an extraordinary leader.
04:28 So thank you, Dr. Tian, for all that you are.
04:31 [APPLAUSE]
04:34 And thank you to all the leaders who are with us today.
04:37 [CHEERING]
04:41 Leader Driscoll, Leader Davis, Mayor Deegan,
04:48 and Democratic State Party Chair Nikki Fried.
04:51 [CHEERING]
04:54 And a special thank you to all the organizers and advocates
05:00 and elected leaders who have been on the forefront
05:03 of this fight for so long.
05:06 So listen, I think we all know, this is a fight for freedom.
05:12 This is a fight for freedom, the fundamental freedom
05:16 to make decisions about one's own body
05:20 and not have their government tell them
05:22 what they're supposed to do.
05:24 [CHEERING]
05:28 And as we know, almost two years ago,
05:33 the highest court in our land, the Court of Thurgood and RBG,
05:38 took a constitutional right that had been recognized
05:43 from the people of America, from the women of America.
05:48 And now in states across our nation,
05:51 extremists have proposed and passed
05:54 laws that criminalize doctors, punish women,
05:59 laws that threaten doctors and nurses with prison time,
06:02 even for life, simply for providing reproductive care.
06:10 Laws that make no exception for rape or incest,
06:14 even reviving laws from the 1800s.
06:18 [CHEERING]
06:23 Across our nation, we witness a full-on assault,
06:29 state by state, on reproductive freedom.
06:34 And understand who is to blame.
06:37 Former President Donald Trump did this.
06:39 [CHEERING]
06:43 Donald Trump hand-picked three members of the United States
06:47 Supreme Court because he intended
06:49 for them to overturn Roe.
06:52 And as he intended, they did.
06:56 Now, many of you here may recall,
06:59 I served on the Judiciary Committee as a United States
07:03 senator.
07:04 And I questioned two of those nominees.
07:08 To one of them I asked, quote--
07:11 I will quote myself--
07:12 [LAUGHTER]
07:15 "Can you think of any laws that give the government the power
07:21 to make decisions about the male body?"
07:24 [CHEERING]
07:27 And it will come as no shock to everyone here,
07:30 he had no good answer.
07:34 And that day, we all knew what was about to come.
07:40 And it happened, just as Donald Trump intended.
07:45 Now, present day, because of Donald Trump,
07:50 more than 20 states have abortion bans, more than 20
07:55 Trump abortion bans.
07:57 And today, this very day, at the stroke of midnight,
08:04 another Trump abortion ban went into effect here in Florida.
08:11 As of this morning, 4 million women in this state
08:17 woke up with fewer reproductive freedoms
08:20 than they had last night.
08:23 This is the new reality under a Trump abortion ban.
08:28 Starting this morning, medical professionals like Dr. Tien
08:33 could be sent to prison for up to five years
08:37 for providing reproductive care, even earlier in pregnancy.
08:43 Reality under a Trump abortion ban.
08:46 Starting this morning, women in Florida
08:49 became subject to an abortion ban so extreme
08:52 it applies before many women even know they are pregnant.
08:57 Which, by the way, tells us the extremists who wrote this ban
09:02 either don't know how a woman's body works--
09:05 [CROWD BOOING]
09:08 --or they simply don't care.
09:13 Trump says he wants to leave abortion up to the states,
09:18 he says, up to the states.
09:21 All right.
09:23 So here's how that works out.
09:25 Today, one in three women of reproductive age
09:29 live in a state with a Trump abortion ban,
09:33 many with no exception for rape or incest.
09:36 Now, on that topic, as many of you know,
09:39 I started my career as a prosecutor,
09:43 specializing in crimes against women and children.
09:47 What many of you may not know is why.
09:51 So when I was in high school, I learned
09:54 that my best friend was being molested by her stepfather.
09:59 And I said to her, well, you've got to come and live with us.
10:02 I called my mother, and my mother said, of course she does.
10:05 And so she did.
10:07 So the idea that someone who survives
10:11 a crime of violence to their body, a violation of their body,
10:17 would not have the authority to make a decision about what
10:21 happens to their body next, that's immoral.
10:26 That's immoral.
10:28 And one does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held
10:33 beliefs to agree.
10:35 The government should not be telling her what to do.
10:38 [APPLAUSE]
10:42 And let us understand--
10:53 let us understand the impact of these bans,
10:57 the horrific reality that women face every single day.
11:03 Folks, since Roe was overturned, I
11:06 have met women who were refused care during a miscarriage.
11:10 I met a woman who was turned away from an emergency room,
11:14 and it was only when she developed sepsis
11:18 that she received care.
11:21 Now, I'm proud to be the first president or vice president
11:24 in history to visit a reproductive health clinic.
11:26 [APPLAUSE]
11:34 But around our country, since that decision came down,
11:38 clinics have been forced to close.
11:41 Think about it-- clinics that provide breast cancer
11:45 screenings, contraceptive care, PAPs, life-saving care.
11:53 And I have seen firsthand, then, that this truly
11:57 is a health care crisis.
12:00 And Donald Trump is the architect.
12:04 And by the way, that is not a fact he hides.
12:07 In fact, he brags about it.
12:10 He has said the collection of abortion bans in the state
12:14 is, quote, "working the way it's supposed to."
12:19 Just this week in an interview, he
12:22 said states have the right to monitor pregnant women
12:26 to enforce these bans.
12:29 And states have the right to punish pregnant women
12:34 for seeking out abortion care.
12:36 So Florida, the contrast in this election
12:42 could not be more clear.
12:45 Basically, under Donald Trump, it
12:47 would be fair game for women to be monitored and punished
12:51 by the government, whereas Joe Biden and I
12:55 have a different view.
12:58 We believe the government should never come
13:00 between a woman and her doctor.
13:02 [APPLAUSE]
13:05 Never.
13:10 And as much harm as he has already caused,
13:19 a second Trump term would be even worse.
13:25 Donald Trump's friends in the United States Congress
13:28 are trying to pass a national ban.
13:32 And understand, a national ban would outlaw abortion
13:36 in every single state, even in states
13:40 like New York and California.
13:43 And now Trump wants us to believe he will not
13:46 sign a national ban.
13:49 Well, I say enough with the gaslighting.
13:52 Enough with the gaslighting.
13:54 [APPLAUSE]
13:57 Because we all know if Donald Trump gets the chance,
14:04 he will sign a national abortion ban.
14:10 And how do we know?
14:12 Well, let's take a look at the evidence and follow the facts.
14:18 Maybe as a former prosecutor, I like
14:20 to say we should really look at the evidence
14:22 and follow the facts.
14:23 OK, Congress tried to pass a national abortion ban in 2017.
14:29 And the then-president, Trump, endorsed it, 2017,
14:35 and promised to sign it if it got to his desk.
14:40 And in that same interview he gave this week,
14:44 he seemed perfectly fine signing a national ban that
14:48 would make it illegal to receive IVF treatment.
14:55 Well, the great Maya Angelou once
14:58 said, when someone tells you who they are,
15:04 believe them the first time.
15:06 [APPLAUSE]
15:10 And Donald Trump has told us who he is.
15:16 So here's what a second Trump term looks like.
15:19 More bans, more suffering, less freedom.
15:25 But we are not going to let that happen.
15:29 [APPLAUSE]
15:32 Because, you see, we trust women.
15:37 We trust women to know what is in their own best interest.
15:42 And women trust all of us to fight to protect
15:46 their most fundamental freedoms.
15:49 [APPLAUSE]
15:52 And this November, up and down the ballot,
15:59 reproductive freedom is on the ballot.
16:03 And you, the leaders, you, the people,
16:08 have the power to protect it with your vote.
16:14 Donald Trump may think he can take Florida for granted.
16:18 It is your power that will send Joe Biden and me back
16:22 to the White House.
16:23 [APPLAUSE]
16:27 And when Congress passes a law that
16:34 restores the reproductive freedoms of Roe,
16:38 our president, Joe Biden, will sign it.
16:41 [APPLAUSE]
16:44 Donald Trump was the president who took away
16:48 the protections of Roe.
16:50 Joe Biden will be the president who puts the protections of Roe
16:54 back in place.
16:55 [APPLAUSE]
16:59 And it's going to take all of us to get there.
17:05 And by the way, momentum--
17:08 momentum is on our side.
17:11 Just think about it.
17:12 Since Roe was overturned, every time reproductive freedom
17:18 has been on the ballot, the people of America
17:21 voted for freedom.
17:22 [APPLAUSE]
17:25 From Kansas to California to Kentucky,
17:29 in Michigan, Montana, Vermont, and Ohio,
17:34 the people of America voted for freedom, and not by a little,
17:40 but often by overwhelming margins,
17:43 proving also that this is not a partisan issue.
17:48 It's not a partisan issue.
17:50 And proving that the voice of the people
17:54 has been heard and will be heard.
17:57 [APPLAUSE]
18:03 So today I ask, Florida, are you ready to make your voices heard?
18:08 [APPLAUSE]
18:10 Do we trust women?
18:12 [APPLAUSE]
18:13 Do we believe in reproductive freedom?
18:15 [APPLAUSE]
18:17 Do we believe in the promise of America?
18:19 [APPLAUSE]
18:20 Are we ready to fight for it?
18:23 [APPLAUSE]
18:24 And when we fight, we win.
18:27 God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
18:31 Thank you all.
18:32 [APPLAUSE]
18:35 (electronic music)