Kamala Harris stood before a packed crowd near the White House on Tuesday and promised Americans she would fight for them every day while urging voters to reject Donald Trump’s efforts to sow division and fear, saying: “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

With a week left until Election Day, the vice president sought to bridge the gap with Trump by delivering his closing speech from the same spot on the grassy Ellipse where the former Republican president incited the Capitol insurrection in 2021 and vowed to work toward it. He’s trying to improve people’s lives while his Republican opponent argues that it’s only for him.

“I’ll be honest with you: I’m not perfect,” he said. “I make mistakes. But I promise you this: Even if you don’t vote for me, I will always listen to you. I will always tell you the truth, even if it’s hard to hear. I will work every day to build consensus and reach compromise to get things done. And if you give me a chance to fight on your behalf, there’s nothing in the world that can stand in my way.”

Harris began her closing remarks by recalling Trump’s role in the chaos of January 6, 2021. Trump told lies about the 2020 presidential election, prompting crowds to march to the Capitol and unsuccessfully try to stop the certification of Democrat Joe Biden. victory. He brought up threats to use the military against political rivals and label those who disagreed with him as “enemies from within.”

“Look, we know who Donald Trump is. “He is the person who stood in this very spot nearly four years ago and sent an armed mob to the U.S. Capitol to subvert the will of the people in a free and fair election,” Trump said. “He has spent a decade trying to keep the American people divided and afraid of each other.” he added.

“This is not a presidential candidate thinking about how to make his life better,” he said, branding Trump a “petty tyrant” and a “wannabe dictator.”

Harris continued: “But America, I’m here tonight to say: This is not who we are.” “It doesn’t have to be this way,” he added.

Harris has tried to use her biggest remaining stage before polls close to make a broader case for why voters should reject Trump and consider his proposals, while continuing to promote herself to voters who want more information.

With the White House gleaming behind her, Harris encouraged the crowd to imagine their different futures depending on who wins on Election Day.

“In less than 90 days, either Donald Trump or I will be in the Oval Office,” he said. “On Day One, if elected, Donald Trump would walk into that office with a list of enemies. When I’m elected, I’ll walk in with a to-do list.

Harris outlined key policy goals, including expanding Medicare coverage for home health care, increasing the nation’s housing supply and working to restore access to abortion nationwide.

His speech drew a large crowd to Washington, and his supporters flocked to the Washington Monument on the National Mall. More importantly, his campaign hopes this environment will help him capture the attention of battleground state voters who are unsure of who to vote for or whether to vote at all.

Before her remarks, Harris’ campaign featured a cast of ordinary Americans talking about their dreams and priorities, rather than showcasing the star power featured at recent Harris events. They included Amanda Zurawski, who nearly died of sepsis after being denied care due to Texas’ strict abortion ban, Craig Sicknick, brother of Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who died following the Jan. 6 attack, and a woman living in Pennsylvania. Husband and wife who previously voted for Trump but now support Harris.

Ruth Chiari, 78, of Charlottesville, Virginia, said she attended the rally with her husband to “support democracy.”

“I think everyone understands what’s on the ballot,” he said while waiting in line to attend the event. “We will either have an autocrat or freedom.”

Kathleen Nicholas, 36, a government relations worker in Washington, remembered Jan. 6 and loved the contrast of Tuesday’s crowds and atmosphere from that day. “I like that he chose this place to close,” he said. “What we need is to have something that directly contrasts with that day.”

With time running out and the race narrowing, Harris and Trump were looking for big moments to shift momentum to their side.

The address came days after Harris left for Texas, a reliably Republican state. appears with megastar Beyoncé and the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Emphasizing the consequences for women after overturning the Wade case. It was also a speech aimed at attracting the attention of voters in battleground states.

The vice president’s final speech has been in the works for weeks. But aides hoped Trump’s message would be more effective after his rally at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday. where speakers hurled cruel and racist slurs.

“Unlike Donald Trump, I do not believe that people who disagree with me are enemies,” Harris said. “He wants to put them in jail. I’ll give them a seat at my table. And I promise to be a president for all Americans. To always put the country above party and self.”

It’s also central to his message: Positioning himself as a “next-generation” leader after Trump and even his current boss, President Joe Biden.

“It’s time to stop pointing fingers and start locking arms,” he said. “It is time to turn a new page to drama, conflict, fear and division. It’s time for a new generation of leadership in America. And I stand ready to offer that leadership as the next president of the United States.”

He acknowledged that “many of you are still learning who I am” after Biden’s surprise rise to the top of the Democratic rankings after dropping out of the race in July, and used those words to try to respond to voters’ curiosity.

“I realize this is not your typical campaign,” Harris said, adding that she is “not afraid of tough fights against bad actors and powerful interests.”

Ahead of Harris’ speech, Trump, in remarks to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida on Tuesday morning, accused Harris of closing with a message that did not address Americans’ daily struggles and the kitchen table. concerns.

He said Harris “keeps talking about Hitler and the Nazis because her record is abysmal,” a reference to Harris amplifying her former chief of staff’s warnings that Trump spoke admiringly about the Nazi leader while in office.

Trump press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “The closing argument to the American people is simple: Kamala broke it; He will fix it.”

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Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price in Palm Beach, Florida, Ayana Alexander in Baltimore and Fatima Hussein, Chris Megerian, Dan Merica, Will Weissert, Colleen Long and Gary Fields in Washington contributed to this report.