Election 2020: Dueling realities about COVID-19 at Biden, Trump rallies
The images they present reinforce sharply different views of the danger.
With five days until Election Day, and President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden racing toward Nov. 3, nearly 80 million Americans have already cast their ballots -- an early voting record.
Thursday brought both Trump and Biden to Tampa, Florida, revealing how crucial the swing state is to both campaigns, with the contest overshadowed by coronavirus cases rising there and in every battleground state.
The president's aggressive, defensive strategy comes as polls show him trailing nationally and in battleground states key to his reelection hopes. First lady Melania Trump joined him for the first time. A Trump rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina, this evening was postponed due to bad weather. Vice President Mike Pence is in Iowa and Nevada.
At his Tampa rally, Biden was expected to again brand the race as a "battle for the soul of the nation" at a drive-in event, after an earlier event in Broward County. Running mate California Sen. Kamala Harris was holding a virtual voter mobilization event with the "Divine Nine" -- historically Black fraternities and sororities-- then an evening virtual rally with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
Top headlines:
- Biden rally cut short abruptly by pouring rain
- At Iowa rally, Pence acknowledges COVID-19 cases are rising
- Biden points to diversity in Latino community for scattered polling on his support
- Melania Trump joins Trump at a rally for the first time of the 2020 cycle
- Trump campaign postpones North Carolina rally due to Zeta
- At dueling Trump and Biden rallies, dueling realities about COVID-19
At Iowa rally, Pence acknowledges COVID-19 cases are rising
Pence returned to Iowa this afternoon, his second visit this month, and with coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths trending up in the state, he tried to reassure Iowans that "we’ll get through this together" -- taking a different tone on the pandemic from the president's.
"And even as we're seeing cases rising in parts of the country, people of Iowa can be confident that we're going to continue -- we're going to continue to work around the clock to assure that all of our doctors and nurses have all the support they need to give any Iowa family impacted by the coronavirus the level of care we'd want for a member of our family," Pence said.
The White House coronavirus task force, which Pence leads, has placed Iowa in the "red zone" for new cases, advising Iowans to wear masks, practice social distancing and avoid large gatherings, which was not completely adhered to at Pence’s rally held on the tarmac of Des Moines International Airport. More than half of supporters were wearing masks, but there was no social distancing.
The vice president did continue to wear his mask as he walked from Air Force Two to the stage at the event, only removing it to speak, and giving an elbow bump to Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa -- facing a competitive race of her own -- who introduced him.
He closed his remarks by harkening back to Biden's warning of a "dark winter" at the last debate if the virus continues to spread, telling Iowans instead, "under President Donald Trump, the best is yet to come.”
Pence's rally in Des Moines, ahead of another rally this evening in Reno, Nevada, comes just days after at least five people in his inner circle tested positive for COVID-19. The vice president continues to test negative, according to his office.
-ABC News' Justin Gomez
Biden points to diversity in Latino community for scattered polling on his support
Before departing Fort Lauderdale in Broward County for Tampa, Biden made a stop at a voter activation center to greet volunteers and voter, telling them it "feels good" to be back in Florida, his third trip to the Sunshine State this month, as he pitches himself to senior and Latino voters in the state.
When asked by ABC News’ Karen Travers about the recent poll of the Latino community in Florida that showed a range of support, and if he were concerned that his message was not breaking through in the community, Biden pointed to the diversity of voters in the bloc.
"No, look, the Latino community here is the most diverse Latino community in the country," Biden said. "It's all across the board. It’s Caribbean. It's Mexican. It's Latin American. It’s across the board. And what you got to do is go to where the people live. And every one of these Latino and Hispanic organizations are slightly different."
Biden also took aim at Trump in is answer, slamming the president for his treatment of Latino and Hispanic Americans.
"He's sending Cuban Americans back to the dictatorship. He's sending -- he’s sending Venezuelan-Americans back to the dictatorship. He’s trying to send Haitian-Americans back. This is a guy who's not doing much of anything to be very helpful," Biden said.
The former vice president also stressed the importance of Florida to his potential victory in the Electoral College, telling reporters if he wins the state, the race is “over.”
-ABC News Molly Nagle
Melania Trump joins Trump at a rally for the first time of the 2020 cycle
First lady Melania Trump joined her husband on the campaign trail for the first time of the 2020 cycle, introducing him to thousands of mostly maskless supporters at an afternoon rally in Tampa.
The first lady, also not modeling a mask, began by saying, "In a time when hate, negativity and fear are the messages the media streams into our homes and the large tech companies are protecting political censorship," her husband's administration is focused on "the health and safety of the American people."
As coronavirus cases rise in Florida, she said Trump is working "not only destroying the virus and building back the economy" but "on creating ways for people to safely stop isolating and start gathering with friends again on a safe distances."
However, public health experts say mask wearing and social distancing should continue with greater diligence to avoid a surge of new cases and have noted distribution of a vaccine to the general public is expected to go well into 2021 at the earliest.
The first lady went on to say those not supportive of her husband’s efforts to produce a coronavirus vaccine are not supportive of the American people -- a swipe as some Democrats have questioned whether they’d take a vaccine if Trump alone said it was safe.
"If you are not supporting the safe production of a vaccine, you are not supporting the health and safety of the American people," she said to roaring applause. "There is no room to play politics on this topic in the midst of pandemic.”
“This country deserves a president with proven results, not empty words and promises," she added. "I ask that you join us in continuing to put America first."
The first lady offered her husband a kiss as he then took the stage.
While this is their first joint appearance on the 2020 trail, the first lady also attended the presidential debates and made a solo campaign stop in Pennsylvania Tuesday, arguing in her most political speech to date that Biden promotes a "socialist agenda."
Trump campaign postpones North Carolina rally due to Zeta
The Trump campaign said it has postponed Trump’s Fayetteville, North Carolina, rally set for this evening due to "50 miles per hour winds and other weather conditions” related to tropical storm Zeta.
The rally was set to start at 6:30 p.m.
The campaign said it will reschedule the rally for Monday.
-ABC News' Will Steakin
Overview: Trump, Biden hold dueling rallies in battleground Florida
Even as markets plunge and a new surge in coronavirus cases sweeps the country -- with some states imposing new restrictions -- Trump continues to close his reelection campaign by urging largely maskless crowds of supporters to dismiss the evidence -- insisting the nation is "rounding the turn" on the pandemic -- and to take his word that the economy is swiftly recovering.
The president is expected to continue that message today with campaign rallies in Florida and North Carolina -- states he won in 2016 -- seeking to defend his electoral map to a potential win. For the first time in the 2020 cycle, first lady Melania Trump will join her husband on the trail, attempting to bring an appeal to suburban women, a demographic Trump is struggling with.
He's also expected to tout the gross domestic product (GDP) report out this morning showing the economy grew at an annual rate of 33.1% during the third quarter -- the largest ever quarterly growth in data -- but this figure comes on the heels of the biggest drop ever when the economy shrank 31.4% as the country shut down.
Like the president, Biden is also in the Sunshine State vying for Florida’s 29 electoral votes -- hosting drive-in rallies in Broward County and Tampa.
The two will appear just hours apart in Tampa, near the western end of the I-4 corridor -- the interstate that cuts through the middle of Florida from Dayton Beach through Orlando and down to St. Petersburg -- that's thought to be a bellwether region in the swing state. It's the first time both candidates have actively campaigned in the same state on the same day in the presidential race.
Biden's has framed his closing argument to voters on responsible pandemic management, acknowledging to voters Wednesday that even if he’s elected, the path to normal won’t be like "flipping a switch." He has also hammered his plan for a national strategy to beat the virus and tried to set an example by wearing a mask and holding drive-in rallies to maintain social distancing.
The former vice president heads later this week to three more states Trump won in 2016 -- Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan -- where he’ll hold a drive-in rally Saturday with former President Barack Obama, their first joint appearance of 2020.
Biden’s running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris will participate in a virtual voter mobilization event with the Divine Nine -- known formally as the National Pan-Hellenic Council and consisting of nine historically Black fraternities and sororities, including Alpha Kappa Alpha which Harris joined at Howard University. In the evening, she has a virtual rally with another former Democratic primary opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. as the ticket makes its final pitch to more progressive voters.
Pence speaks at campaign rallies in Des Moines, Iowa, and Reno, Nevada -- a state which Hillary Clinton won by only 2.5 points in 2016 as Republicans seek to maintain their map and potentially pick up the Copper State.