A surprising twist during a recent border photo op in Cochise County, Arizona, former President Donald Trump inadvertently credited Vice President Kamala Harris for the past success of San Francisco. The incident unfolded as Trump, aiming to criticize Harris’s leadership, ended up highlighting a period of notable prosperity in the city that coincided with her tenure as San Francisco’s District Attorney.
On August 23, 2024, Mediaite reported that Trump held a counter-programming event at the border as the Democratic National Convention (DNC) concluded. His remarks included an unusual admission about the 2020 election, where he stated, “I got many millions more votes than I got the first time, but didn’t quite make it, just a little bit short.” This acknowledgment of his electoral loss was notably at odds with his usual claims of a rigged election.
However, it was Trump’s comments about San Francisco that truly captured attention. Attempting to criticize Harris, he said, “To the highest standards of Border Patrol. These guys are fantastic. I’ll tell you, these are courageous people. They’re fighting for the country. They’re fighting against these radical left lunatics that are destroying our country. And she’s the leader of the pack. She destroyed San Francisco. Absolutely destroyed it! She destroyed California. You can’t go into California. You can’t go into San Francisco. It’s not livable. 15 years ago it was the best city in the country! One of the best cities in the world! And now you can’t do anything. Look at what she’s done. And now she’s going to be president, and she’s going to do the exact same thing.”
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The irony in Trump’s statement lies in his praise of San Francisco as “one of the best cities in the world” from around 2009—a period when Kamala Harris was serving as San Francisco’s District Attorney. His criticism of Harris inadvertently spotlighted a time of prosperity during her leadership, showcasing a gap between his intended message and the historical context.
Trump’s remarks about the Border Patrol agents were consistent with his long-standing focus on immigration issues, portraying them as “courageous people” and aligning with his critiques of Democratic policies on border security. His comments about California being “not livable” mirror common conservative criticisms of the state’s challenges, including homelessness and crime.
Predicting that Harris would bring similar failures to the country if she were to become president, Trump continued his strategy of attacking potential future Democratic leaders. This rhetoric not only aimed to undermine Harris but also to generate media coverage, ensuring he remained a prominent figure in the news cycle amid the DNC.
As Harris takes on a more significant role in the Biden administration, including efforts to address migration from Central America, Trump’s comments reflect ongoing partisan disputes. The complexity of urban issues often gets lost in political rhetoric, with simplified attacks failing to capture the multifaceted nature of challenges faced by cities like San Francisco.
This incident underscores the pitfalls of political messaging, as Trump’s attempt to criticize Harris ended up inadvertently praising her for a period when San Francisco was thriving. As the 2024 election campaign intensifies, both Trump and Harris are set to remain central figures in the political arena, and this accidental praise may just be one of many unexpected developments in the forthcoming election season.
The episode also highlights the need for careful fact-checking and historical context in political speeches. Candidates and their teams must navigate the intricacies of their opponents’ records with precision to avoid inadvertently endorsing the very figures they intend to criticize.
