US Vice President Kamala Harris has described Donald Trump as “increasingly unhinged” and branded his admiration for Adolf Hitler, as reported by a former high-ranking aide, as “incredibly dangerous”.
The Democrat’s rebuke of the former president surfaced with only 13 days remaining in their contentious White House campaign.
She addressed the media outside her residence in Washington after Mr. Trump’s former presidential chief of staff, retired Marine General John Kelly, disclosed revelations regarding the Republican’s reverence for the Nazi dictator and his military during World War II.
“It’s profoundly troubling and incredibly dangerous that Donald Trump would invoke Adolf Hitler, the individual accountable for the deaths of six million Jews and hundreds of thousands of Americans,” Ms. Harris stated before departing for a televised town hall in battleground state Pennsylvania.
Mr. Kelly (R) remarked that Mr. Trump “fits the general definition of fascist” (File image)
Mr. Kelly shared with The New York Times that Mr. Trump had commented that “Hitler did some good things too” and expressed a desire for generals akin to those that Adolf Hitler had, rather than the US military.
Mr. Kelly reiterated his assertion that he believes his former boss “certainly fits the general definition of fascist”.
Ms. Harris stated: “Donald Trump is increasingly unhinged and unstable, and if he were to secure a second term, individuals like John Kelly would not be present to serve as safeguards against his tendencies and actions.”
“So, the bottom line is this: We know what Donald Trump seeks. He desires unchecked power,” Ms. Harris added, warning that Mr. Trump aims for a military that is “loyal to him” rather than to the US Constitution.
‘Blatant foreign interference’
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump’s campaign has accused British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party of “blatant foreign interference” in the US presidential election following reports that some volunteers traveled to assist Ms. Harris’s campaign.
The Republican candidate’s team lodged a complaint with the Federal Election Commission in Washington, seeking an investigation into what they claimed were seemingly illegal contributions from Labour to the Harris campaign.
Mr. Trump praised Mr. Starmer when they met at Trump Tower last month.
British political volunteers have historically traveled to the US during elections, with centre-left Labour Party activists typically supporting the Democrats, their sister party, while Conservatives back the Republicans.
Unnamed British officials indicated that some senior Labour advisers recently visited Democrat strategists, buoyed by their significant victory in the British election last July.
One of the subjects they explored was how Labour reclaimed the majority of the former industrial areas that had turned away from them in 2019.
Mr. Starmer denied that the complaint would harm relations with Donald Trump should the former president win again on November 5, asserting that Labour supporters volunteered on their own time.
However, the complaint poses a potential complication.
Mr. Trump, who has a close relationship with Britain’s right-wing politician Nigel Farage and previously maintained good ties with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, had commended Mr. Starmer during their meeting in September at Trump Tower.
Greg Swenson, the chairman of Republican Overseas UK, noted that while Mr. Trump is unpredictable, he believes this incident is unlikely to hurt relations with Mr. Starmer if he wins the presidency next month.
“Trump takes things personally and allows personal conflicts to influence him,” Mr. Swenson remarked.
“Yet, I think Trump will move past this. There may be a bit of scar tissue from this, but probably not,” he added.
Mr. Starmer stated that Labour volunteers have participated in nearly every US election (File image)
According to US regulations, foreigners are allowed to volunteer for election campaigns but cannot provide financial contributions.
The FEC had previously fined Bernie Sanders’s campaign for having the Australian Labour Party fund the travel and meals of its volunteers to support him in the US.
The Trump complaint referenced media reports and a now-deleted LinkedIn post from Sofia Patel, the head of operations at the British Labour Party, who mentioned that nearly 100 current and former Labour party staff were set to travel to the US shortly to assist in electing Harris, the Democratic vice-president.
“I write on behalf of Donald J Trump for President 2024, Inc. to urge an immediate probe into blatant foreign interference in the 2024 Presidential Election in the form of apparent illegal foreign national contributions,” the statement read.
“Those searching for foreign interference in our elections need to look no further than (the) LinkedIn post… The interference is happening in plain sight.”
In a press release titled “The British are coming,” the Trump campaign accused the “far-left Labour Party” of fostering “Kamala’s dangerously liberal policies and rhetoric”.
Mr. Starmer, traveling to Samoa, informed reporters that Labour volunteers have contributed to essentially every US election.
“They are participating in their spare time, as volunteers, and they’re likely staying with other volunteers over there,” he noted.
“That’s really straightforward,” Mr. Starmer added.
