Vice Presidential Pool Reports of August 18, 2024

Vice President Harris arrived via motorcade at 12:06 pm. She pulled up in a black SUV. She is wearing a bright blue jacket, black slacks and Converse tennis shoes. She exited from the right of the SUV, and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff from the left of the vehicle. For the PA bus tour Emhoff is donning a navy blazer, jeans and tennis shoes.

Harris greeted JBA staff and then boarded AF2 side by side with Emhoff. She waved at press at the top of the plane before going in.

Before takeoff, she came back to gaggle OTR for roughly give minutes before take off.

Next stop: Pittsburgh, PA.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/dib2h0x7uww1v6j93q0b2/ALX0FPo9uCA90uuI0-l03iY?rlkey=3m5vy49vjp1uk0qwhhz20c5u3&st=z0lci2t2&dl=0

AF2 was wheels down in Pittsburgh at 1:17 pm. No visitors to the back of the plane during the flight, the last little bit of which was filled with turbulence. It was pouring down rain in Pittsburgh when we touched down.

VP Harris deplaned at 1:28 PM with the second gentleman. She dropped her left arm over his as they came down the stairs together.

They took a quick SUV ride over to the hanger where her welcome rally was taking place. Two busses that said Harris Walz were parked in the hanger.

Harris walked in to her campaign song "Freedom".

Emhoff and Harris spoke with Walz and his wife Gwen and PA out of ear shot of press after arriving.

Walz then came to do a photo line. He did not respond over the music to a shouted question about JD Vance.

PA Sen. Bob Casey also came through.

The crowd shouted to Harris, "We are not going back."

The motorcade left at 1:46 pm for its next stop.

Press are not on the campaign busses with Harris and are in their regular vans.

Among the staffers spotted by pool traveling with Harris today are Brian Fallon, Sheila Nix and Lorraine Voles.

On background from a White House Official:

Upon arrival in Pittsburgh, PA, the Vice President and Second Gentleman were greeted by Governor Tim Walz, Gwen Walz, Senator Bob Casey, Congressman Chris Deluzio, Congresswoman Summer Lee, and County Executive Sara Innamorato.

Harris' motorcade arrived at the Beaver Field Office in Rochester at 2:25 pm. She is at a phone bank.

Motorcade arrived to chants of, "We're not going back," and, "We won't go back." Crowd was holding blue Kamala signs with white lettering.

Part of the pool was set up in the small room, where Harris entered at about 2:33 pm and introduced to Ben Miller, who was said to be the organizing director there.

Six volunteers were seated, holding call scripts and making calls.

Harris went over to speak to a volunteer named "Sheila."

She took a cell phone from a male volunteer, and then she greeted someone on the other line named, "Hannah." (Spelling unknown.)

"How are you doing?" Harris said. She listened to the voice on the other line.

"I love Erie. At some point we'll get to Erie."

She walked around the table to take a seat and continue the conversation. "Tell me about you, " she said. "What issues are you thinking about working on." At times she said "mhmm" and "right" and then said, "We'll you know I started my career at the local level...you're there on the ground, you develop those relationships " and you have to be "responsive" to peoples' needs on the ground.

At another point she said, "We are all in this together...79 days, Hannah"

Walz was on another call across the table.

"She's sitting right across from me, I'll pass that on," she'll be glad to hear that, he told a caller. He also said they (presumably Republicans) are throwing it all at us but we are "happy warriors."

After he hung up, Walz said, "What a nice person. She's excited."

Emhoff also took a call and spoke to a voter. Gwen Walz was also in the room.

Pool was led out of the room after about 7 minutes and into the area where she will deliver remarks, in a tent behind the building where Harris will be delivering remarks.

Event is open press but I will note that in the lead up, they are playing Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours," an Obama campaign favorite.

Harris team passes on the following background on the VPs current stops:

On Background From A Harris-Walz Official:

Vice President Harris, Governor Tim Walz, Doug Emhoff, and Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz are participating in a phone bank at a campaign field office in Beaver County. They are joined by Senator Bob Casey, Representative Chris Deluzio, State Representative Malcolm Kenyatta, and Mayor of Beaver Falls Kenya Johns.

On Background From A Harris-Walz Official:

Vice President Harris, Governor Tim Walz,Doug Emhoff, and Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz are attending a campaign canvass kickoff at a campaign field office in Beaver County, where Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will deliver remarks.They are joined by Senator Bob Casey, Representative Chris Deluzio, State Representative Malcolm Kenyatta, and Mayor of Beaver Falls Kenya Johns.

VP Harris wrapped her remarks around 3:14 pm. Pool was taken out of the event and moved to the press vans several minutes later. It is holding outside the event.

I've asked for an official crowd count but a rough estimate puts attendees -- volunteers for the campaign -- at around 85 people. There were also dozens of people standing outside of the campaign office holding signs in support of Harris.

Motorcade left at 3:50 pm from the campaign office. Outside it passed by a crowd of people holding Trump signs -- all standing in front of one local business, a BBQ joint, together behind a metal barricade -- and then a group of Harris supporters grouped together nearby holding signs with her photo on it and the phrase, "Say it to my face."

Crowd count: 73 is the official tally from the volunteer event. (Some folks standing in back were journalists.)

VP Pool Report #8: firehouse

VP Harris is currently at a firehouse in Aliquippa, Pa. Her bus is parked inside. So is the armored SUV the VP typically travels in. She walked out at 4:18 pm, followed by Emhoff, Walz and Gwen.

She brought burnt almond torts, in two white boxes, for the group from Prantl's.

One of the men had a yellow Labrador with him.

"Oh my goodness, how old is he?" Harris asked as she leaned down to pet him.

"Four months," the fireman said.

She walked along the group of 7 firemen, plus the fire chief, shaking their hands. The rest of the group followed. Whole thing lasted about 2 minutes before pool was led back outside, where it has been raining off and on since the VP landed.

Pool is holding outside ahead of the next stop. Motorcade is about to be on the move again.

On Background From A Harris-Walz Official:

Vice President Harris, Governor Tim Walz, Doug Emhoff, and Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz delivered baked goods to a local firehouse in Aliquippa. They are joined by Representative Chris Deluzio.

Gov. Walz is putting back on his Coach Walz hat and the bus tour has now arrived at the Aliquippa high school football practice.

Jerome Bettis opened, introducing Doug Emhoff, who introduced Tim Walz. All brief remarks (let me know if anyone needs).

Walz said he is "privileged to be on this team" and while he's governor now, for years it was football practice he looked forward to.

Walz told them I "remember every single call" during the first state football championship.

He said politics is similar to football. It's about dignity, and everyone is in it together, win or lose.

"Thanks for giving us the privilege to stand on this field," he said, telling the football players they have earned the right to be out here.

Football players, who were in red t-shirts and shorts, all took a knee to listen to the remarks.

Harris was up next. She said she'd been reading about them all and how they work as a team.

"We applaud your ambition. You want to compete. And you want to win."

"You all are the future of our country," she said.

She said they were all born leaders, who have already chosen that path for themselves.

"It's not easy being a role model. Welcome to the role model club."

She said that's not an easy role to fulfill, referring to herself.

Harris said that she is counting on their leadership as she closed her remarks.

As press was led away Walz got into a very specific discussion with the team about their offense, asking where their linebackers were.

Remarks lasted about 11 minutes in total. Press returned to vans at 5:02 pm.

On Background From A Harris-Walz Official:

Vice President Harris, Governor Tim Walz,Doug Emhoff, and Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz stopped by Aliquippa High School's football practice.

In attendance at the football practice are Franco Dokmanovich "Dok" Harris, the son of former Steelers Hall of Fame player Franco Harris, as well as Hall of Fame Steelers player Jerome "The Bus" Bettis.

After the football practice, the VP's motorcade made a stop back at the firehouse to pick up the bus. She had ridden to the football practice, just down the road and around the corner, in the SUV.

After about 13 minutes at 5:30 pm the motorcade left the firehouse en route to a very Pennsylvania retail stop: Sheetz.

Pool is preset at the Sheetz, waiting for Harris to enter.

It is the new one in the Moon township.

VP came in and began surveying the snacks.

She said Doritos are her go-to -- the original kind, not the new flavors. "I'm just looking for them." But her husband spotted them first. He grabbed a bag for her and started holding it up like a prize. "Ah Dougie, they're there!" she said as she turned around and saw him.

The entire interaction was brief, about a minute long.

Asked about her debate prep, she said, "Haven't had it today. One day at a time."

Her soda of choice?

"I like root beer. He likes Diet Coke," she said.

Is that what she bought? We don't know. Pool was pulled before Harris and Emhoff reached the checkout counter.

Bus and motorcade are on their way to the next stop.

VP Harris answered about 4 minutes of questions from the pool after arriving at a local restaurant, Primanti Bros, in Moon township.

She talked about her Thursday night speech briefly, how she will pay for her economic policy, why she's back in PA again so soon and whether she thinks Bibi actually wants a deal.

On her economic policy, she said "the return on investment" for expanding the tax credits is how it will pay for itself.

"I very much consider us the underdog," she said when asked about national polling released today that shows her several points up.

She then went into the restaurant with Emhoff and the Walz family. She spoke to voters for several minutes out of earshot.

Pool is holding in vans at 6:40pm and will soon be headed back to the airport. More TK from the gaggle.

VP Pool Report #13: gaggle quotes

It was hard to hear the VP when she was looking at reporters on the opposite end of the gaggle. Here's as much of the transcript as possible. It also looks like C-SPAN may have posted video of the gaggle.

Harris on her convention speech: "It's almost done." She said she had "little tweaks" to make. "I'm going to work on it, probably starting tomorrow, and the next couple of days. But it's coming along. I feel good about it."

She said much of it will be what we've heard her talk about before in terms of what she believes to be the "promise of America" and the fact that we are all in this together. "There will be a lot that is about" what I believe is the way forward and "bringing everyone along in that."

Asked about how she plans to pay for her economic policies and what else she might unveil:

"Well, I mean, you just look at it in terms of what we are talking about, for example, around children, and the child tax credit and extending the EITC… that $6,000 for the first year of a child's life, the return on that investment, in terms of what that will do and what it will save, will be tremendous. We've seen it when we did it the first year of our administration…We reduced child poverty by over 50% so that's a lot of the work. And then what we're doing in terms of the tax credits. We know that there's a great return on investment. When we increase homeownership in America. What that means in terms of increasing the tax base, not to mention property tax base, what that does to fund schools, again, return on investment. I think it's a mistake for any person who talks about public policy to not critically evaluate how you measure the return on investment. When you are strengthening neighborhoods, strengthening communities, and in particular, the economy of those communities, and investing in a broad-based economy, everybody benefits, and it pays for itself in that way."

On the national poll released by CBS that shows her up 3 and whether she still considers herself the underdog in the race.

"I very much consider us the underdog. We have a lot of work to do to earn the vote of the American people. That's why we're on this bus tour today, and we're going to be traveling this country as we've been, and talking with folks, listening to folks and hopefully earning their votes over the next 79 days."

Does she feel like she has ground to make up in PA?

"I feel like we need to earn everyone's vote, and that means being on the road, being in communities where people are, where they live, whether it be a high school football team and being there at their public school while they're there at practice and talking to their coaches, whether it means going to the local fire station and talking with our incredible firefighters about what they need and what they have a right to expect, such as that, we are going to pay attention to how they give up so much to keep communities safe, what they do to preserve what we want in terms of a quality of life, and we need to give it back to them in terms of better equipment and the work that they do every day. So I'm gonna be out here with Tim, with the second gentleman, with Mrs. Walz, and we're going to be working on earning every vote between now and November."

Is Netanyahu ready to agree to a ceasefire?

"I will not speak before him, but I will tell you that these conversations are ongoing, and we are not giving up, and we are going to continue to work very hard on this. We got to get a ceasefire, and we got to get those hostages out."

VP Pool Report #14: Pittsburgh airport

VP Harris arrived back at the Pittsburgh airport at 7:02pm. She exited the bus and took a photo with her husband, the Walz family and a large group of people who appeared to be advance and support staff, in front of the vehicle.

Harris and her husband said their goodbyes to the Walz family, with Emhoff giving Gwen a hug, before they went their separate ways on the tarmac. The VP and SG are headed to Chicago now for the Democratic National Convention. They are aboard AF2, which is rolling down the tarmac.

A few other notes:

• On the way in and out of the Primanti Brothers restaurant, a large group of Trump supporters were standing outside demonstrating. They shouted at the press corps, calling them "losers" among other things, as reporters exited the vans and entered.
• Here's a slightly fuller quote from the Sheetz on Harris' debate prep: "Well, haven't had it today; one day at a time, one day at a time."
• Harris campaign spokesman followed up on the gaggle to say the following about how she'd pay for her tax credits: "She supports the revenue raisers in the FY25 Biden-Harris budget that ensure billionaires and big corporations pay their fair share."

AF2 landed in Chicago at 7:39pm CST. A group of lawmakers are on the tarmac to greet Harris. They include Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin and Illinois Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi.

Harris and Emhoff deplaned at 7:49 pm and walked the line shaking lawmakers' hands. They took a group photo afterward.

It is a windy night in the windy city and VP Harris finished on the tarmac at 7:57 pm. The day is almost done.

From the VP's office:

Upon arrival in Chicago, IL, the Vice President and Second Gentleman were greeted by Senator Dick Durbin, Congresswoman Delia Ramirez, Congressman Danny Davis, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, Congressman Mike Quigley, Congressman Bill Foster, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, Congressman Brad Schneider, Julie Dann Schneider, Wife of Rep. Brad Schneider, Congressman Sean Casten, Congresswoman Lauren Underwood, Congressman Jonathan Jackson, Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton, and Alexi Giannoulias, Secretary of State

VP Pool Report #16: Lid

At 10 pm the motorcade arrived at the VP's hotel in downtown Chicago and her office has called a lid. Have a good evening, everyone.