On Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke in Tallahassee, Florida, on the 50th anniversary of Roe v Wade.
The speech was supposed to energize Democratic supporters in a state that has increasingly shifted right and comes ahead of an initiative by the Biden administration to protect abortions.
Harris used abortion rights to argue that Democrats are proponents of freedom while Republican legislators and governors attempt to undermine Americans’ fundamental rights.
After the speech, Harris wrote a defiant post on Twitter calling Republicans ‘extremists’ and promising that the Biden administration would ‘win’ by protecting access to abortions.
Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, abortion is now banned in more than a dozen states. Extremists in state legislatures are calling for more restrictions as Congressional Republicans push a national ban.
This must stop. @POTUS and I are fighting back—and we will win.
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) January 22, 2023
Harris originally planned to hold her pro-abortion rally at either Florida State University or the Florida Capitol, but both venues turned her away.
Instead, she was forced to hold it at a private venue with a smaller audience.
Good Morning: Kamala Harris’ abortion rally got rejected by FSU and Florida’s Capitol and now she is having a much smaller event indoors at a private venue because of the rain
— Brendon Leslie (@BrendonLeslie) January 22, 2023
Harris took the stage at approximately 12:20 p.m at The Moon in Tallahassee. The crowd was reportedly about 1,500 people.
“For 50 years, Americans relied on the rights that Roe protected,” she began. “Now … we speak of the Roe decision in the past tense.”
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She criticized Florida’s 15-week abortion ban that was passed under current Governor Ron DeSantis. She called Florida’s government ‘extremist’ and the abortion ban ‘radical.’
“Extremists in states like Florida … so-called leaders at the state house here in Tallahassee cast a radical abortion ban with no exceptions,” she said to a chorus of boos.
Vice President Harris hammers Florida's 'radical abortion ban,' promises to keep fighting to protect rights
Reporting by @ChristineSextonhttps://t.co/R5Sd9TdKEF#FlaPol
— Florida Politics (@Fla_Pol) January 22, 2023
After attacking Florida’s abortion laws, Harris took a more direct shot at DeSantis by referencing a statement of his where he said that Florida was on the ‘vanguard’ of freedom.
She challenged his statement, implying that abortion access is essential to freedom.
“Can we truly be free if so-called leaders claim to be, I quote, ‘on the vanguard of freedom,’ while they dare to restrict the rights of the American people and attack the very foundation of freedom,” Harris said.
“Can we truly be free if so called leaders claim to be quote and I quote on the vanguard of freedom while they dare to restrict the rights of the American people!” “And attack the very foundations of freedom!” – @VP Harris pic.twitter.com/n6aZPxnYwY
— Sky (@skylikeajedi) January 22, 2023
Conservatives quickly criticized the Vice President for focusing on freedom during her speech.
Desantis War Room obtained a document that attendees of Harris’ speech were required to sign, which made them disclose their vaccination status.
Attendees who were unvaccinated or partially vaccinated were forced to social distance and take a Covid-19 test prior to attending.
Right now, Kamala Harris is in Tallahassee making a speech about "freedom."
Here's the paperwork required for attending @VP's speech: pic.twitter.com/dgQDyWShuI
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) January 22, 2023
Others defended DeSantis after the Vice President’s attacks, with the Florida Standard saying that he has made the state more ‘desirable’ to live in by boosting residents’ quality of life.
Florida remains one of the top destinations for people migrating from Democratic states bleeding residents such as California and New York, something that both Governor Gavin Newsom, D-Ca. and Governor Kathy Hochul, D-Ny. have lamented.
With all due respect @VP, the Governor of the great State of Florida is not a “so called leader.”@GovRonDeSantis led Florida to become an even more desirable state to live in with its booming economy, its focus on freedom and an amazing quality of life. pic.twitter.com/Ems9I2fGW4
— The Florida Standard (@theflstandard) January 22, 2023
In a moment that some people found questionable, State Senator Lauren Book, D-Fl. trotted her daughter out on stage to claim that her daughter has fewer rights than her son.
“When she was born, her and her twin brother had equal rights,” she said. “Today, that cannot be said.” Book claimed.
Democratic State Senator Lauren Book was then joined by her young daughter on stage.
"When she was born, her and her twin brother had equal rights," she said. "Today that cannot be said."
— Christopher Cann (@ChrisCannFL) January 22, 2023
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