Harris says Trump's comments about women 'deeply offensive' | 2024 US Election News

The vice president attacks the former president after he said he will 'protect women whether they like it or not'.

The Democratic Alliance presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, says that Donald Trump does not understand women when he talks about protecting them “whether they like it or not”.

Harris said the former president did not understand women's rights “to make decisions about their lives, including their bodies”.

“I think it upsets everybody,” Harris said before spending the day campaigning in the western states of Arizona and Nevada.

Harris has made reproductive freedom a key part of her election campaign, with many of her rallies featuring stories of women suffering or dying because of a lack of access to abortion due to state-specific laws.

Trump has appointed three justices to the US Supreme Court that make up the majority of conservatives overturning federal abortion rights in June 2022.

'I will protect them'

As the outbreak continues to spread, Trump has been saying at public events that he will “protect women” and make sure they don't “think about abortion”, and he will protect them from “criminals”.

He also made this comment at a rally on Wednesday in Green Bay, Wisconsin, telling his supporters that his aides keep telling him to stop using the phrase because it's inappropriate.

He said he told his assistants: “I will do it whether the women like it or not.” I will protect them.”

Harris said it's part of Trump's tendency.

“This is just the latest in a long series of issues that the former president has made about how he thinks about women and their organization,” she said.

The back-and-forth was part of a heated battle between Democrats and Republicans with five days to go before the Nov. 5 election.

On Thursday, on the ABC news program The View, billionaire Harris supporter Mark Cuban, told the press: “Donald Trump, you've never seen him around smart, powerful women.” It's as simple as that. They scare him.”

Cuban's comments prompted Trump campaign spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt to quickly respond that she “showed that Trump's female supporters are weak and dumb”.

It's a problem Republicans are fighting

Trump and Republicans have struggled with how to talk about abortion rights, especially as women across the country struggle to get proper health care because of abortion restrictions.

Trump has given conflicting answers about his position on abortion, but in recent weeks, he has promised to end the national abortion ban, after previously refusing to do so.

Harris' campaign has focused on making reproductive rights a big motivator for women to get out and vote, including inviting high-profile figures like Beyonce and Michelle Obama to headline reproductive freedom rallies.

In early voting, 1.2 million more women than men voted in the seven battleground states, according to data from analytics firm TargetSmart.