Harris shuts down anti-Israel protesters at campaign stop: ‘I’m speaking’

Vice President Kamala Harris said an old phrase to shut down protesters at a campaign stop in Michigan, telling them, “I’m speaking.”

Some pro-Palestinian protesters began shouting at Harris during her campaign stop in Detroit on Wednesday. At first, she acknowledged their right to protest, as did President Joe Biden at a campaign event when he was still in the race. 

“I’m here because we believe in democracy. Everyone’s voice matters,” she said. “But I am speaking now. I am speaking now.”

When they did not quiet down, she said, “You know what? If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that. Otherwise, I’m speaking.” 

After the line about Trump, the crowd loudly cheered for her and began chanting “Kamala” to drown out protesters. The protesters were then escorted out of the event, according to NBC News.

Harris famously said the line during the vice presidential debate in 2020 between herself and then-Vice President Mike Pence when she told him, “Mr. Vice President, I am speaking.”

While in Michigan, Harris met with the uncommitted movement about its concerns regarding Israel’s war in Gaza. In Michigan, more than 100,000 people voted “uncommitted” in the Democratic primary, signaling their frustration with the war and indicating Biden would need to make a change in policy to gain their vote. 

“Michigan voters want to support you, but we need a policy that will save lives in Gaza right now. I meet with community members every day in Michigan who are losing tens and hundreds of family members in Gaza. Right now, we need an arms embargo,” Layla Elabed, a co-founder of Uncommitted, told Harris, according to the group.

Some in the uncommitted movement seem more willing to hear out Harris than they did Biden, as she has acknowledged the toll of the thousands of lives lost in the Gaza Strip.

“I’ve said it many times, but it bears repeating: Israel has a right to defend itself, but how it does so matters,” Harris said last month following a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating,” Harris added. “The images of dead children and desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety, sometimes displaced for the second, third, or fourth time. We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies. We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering, and I will not be silent.”

Her retort to protesters was not the only time in the rally she quieted down the crowd. When some of the crowd began chanting, “Lock him up,” an allusion to the “Lock her up” chants that were frequently said during Trump rallies in 2016, Harris said, “Hold on. Here’s the thing: The courts are going to handle that. We’re going to beat him in November.”