Ahead of next week’s Wisconsin visit, Vice President Kamala Harris says she’s ‘scared as heck’ that Donald Trump could win

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris said she’s “scared as heck” that Donald Trump could win another term as president as she pledged an aggressive campaign to make sure that doesn’t happen.

She made the comments Wednesday on ABC’s “The View” in response to a question from Joy Behar, one of the show’s hosts. Behar cited reports that other top Democrats — including former President Barack Obama and Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina — are concerned about President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign.

Asked if she was scared about the potential of another Trump presidency, Harris said: “I am scared as heck! Which is why I’m traveling our country. You know, there’s an old saying that there’s only two ways to run for office — either without an opponent or scared. So on all of those points, yes, we should all be scared.”

Harris said the fear should serve as motivation for the campaign ahead.

“When we are scared for the future of our children, do we then stay in bed with the covers over?” she said. “No, we can’t.”

Harris added, “We’ve got to earn reelection. There is no question. We’ve got to be on the road.”

The vice president is scheduled to begin a series of events focused on abortion in Wisconsin, a key battleground state. Events will begin Monday, the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that protected the right to an abortion.

The court’s conservative majority overturned the nationwide right to abortion in 2022, a significant defeat for Democrats but one that has also motivated the party’s voters.

“In this year of our Lord 2024, the government should not be telling women what to do with their bodies, and so it’s that basic,” Harris said.

Alyssa Griffin, a former Trump communications aide who has become a critic of the former president, pressed Harris on why Biden has fallen short of his predecessor in some polls.

“What does it say that the party is struggling to compete with an unfit man who is very likely going to jail?” asked Griffin, who is another host of “The View.”

Harris suggested that voters haven’t been paying attention to politics and are now “beginning to narrow in on what this election will mean.”

She described a choice between “competence versus chaos,” as well as a battle for the future of American democracy.

“This is going to be the split screen,” Harris said. “And I do believe that the American people are going to vote in favor of what is in the best interest of the future of our country and in particular our children.”