Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump suggested that Vice President Harris wouldn’t be able to stand up to world leaders because of her appearance, adding that he didn’t want to spell it out but viewers would know what he meant.
“She’ll be like a play toy,” Trump — who has a history of using sexist attacks and stereotypes in campaigns against women — said in a Fox News interview with Laura Ingraham, a portion of which aired on Tuesday night. “They look at her and they say, ‘We can’t believe we got so lucky.’ They’re going to walk all over her.”
Trump then turned to look directly at the camera and added: “And I don’t want to say as to why. But a lot of people understand it.”
Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said he was not referring to race or gender and went on to criticize Harris over her record on immigration and other Biden administration policies.
“She is weak, dishonest and dangerously liberal, and that’s why the American people will reject her on November 5th,” Leavitt said.
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The pro-Harris super PAC American Bridge 21st Century called Trump’s remark about how Harris would stack up against world leaders “very gross and weird.”
Earlier on Tuesday, the campaign criticized Trump for baselessly accusing Harris, who is married to a Jewish man, of disliking Jewish people.
“Donald Trump is hateful, despicable, and should not be our president,” the campaign said in an unsigned statement. “He roots against America. He insults America. Why would we want to put him in charge of America?”
Elsewhere in the Fox News interview, Ingraham asked Trump how he would improve life for Black women, whom Harris is energizing. Trump responded by saying that Harris would lead to unsafe streets, and “you’re going to have millions of people coming in taking your job and your husband’s job.”
Harris on Tuesday urged Trump to commit to debate her. He has expressed openness to debating but cast doubt on a September date hosted by ABC News that he previously agreed to with President Biden before Biden withdrew from the race.
“Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage,” she told a packed arena in Atlanta. “As the saying goes, if you got something to say, say it to my face.”
Trump has habitually criticized the appearance and intelligence of female political opponents, from Carly Fiorina to Hillary Clinton and Nikki Haley. Last week House Republican leaders asked their members not to attack Harris because of her race and identity after several lawmakers dismissed her as a “DEI candidate,” using the abbreviation for “diversity, equity and inclusion.”