Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris of California campaigned in Iowa on the 4th of July.
Harris greeted hundreds of Iowans on a hot afternoon in the yard of a private home in Indianola. Farm fields lent a backdrop to the senator’s criticism of the current administration’s trade policy.
“Iowa farmers, who over a decade or more built up a market selling their soybeans to China, and that market being cut off—it is wrong,” she said. “I believe that this president has betrayed those folks that he promised he would protect and take care of.”
Harris said China does need to be held accountable for stealing trade secrets and intellectual property and other violations of international trade agreements, but the way to do that is to strengthen the U.S. economy and compete more directly with China.
“We want a strong America and that means having a president of the United States who invests in our natural resources and one of our strongest and best natural resources is the American worker.”
Iowa state Rep. Scott Ourth, D-Ackworth, introduced Harris and said her compassion sets her apart from other candidates. During his remarks, the program was briefly delayed when a member of the audience collapsed. A doctor was nearby and a few minutes after the person was taken inside, Ourth announced she was going to be fine. The crowd then began chanting for Harris, and Ourth said she would be out after speaking with the person who fell ill.
Harris continued her Iowa trek with an evening stop in Council Bluffs.
Several other candidates also campaigned in Iowa on Independence Day including South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Vice President Joe Biden.
