United States: Kamala Harris is Oprah Winfrey’s star guest

American television pope Oprah Winfrey demonstrated her ability to mobilize both stars and social networks on Thursday, by welcoming Kamala Harris to a gala set entirely devoted to the Democratic presidential candidate. This grand evening of support, organized in the highly contested state of Michigan for the November 5 election, was broadcast live online on multiple platforms.

Oprah, who many in the United States call only by her first name, had brought together a host of stars for the occasion, who spoke via screen, via teleconference: singer Jennifer Lopez, actresses Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts and Tracee Ellis Ross, comedian Chris Rock, and actors Bryan Cranston and Ben Stiller.

Enough to attract tens of millions of viewers, who had the choice of following this grandiose campaign talk show called “Unite for America” on the YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok or Twitch accounts of one or the other of the two women.

The Oprah Effect

Oprah Winfrey, who has long been close to the Democratic Party, made a notable appearance at the Chicago convention in August which put Kamala Harris in the starting blocks of the race for the White House.

The American vice president knows how beneficial the support of this businesswoman turned billionaire, a familiar embodiment of the American dream, and whose influence remains considerable in the United States, can be to her. So much so that millions of Americans once considered the host as presidential.

In the presence of this cultural icon, Kamala Harris called for unity “in the face of powerful forces that seek to divide us,” thus targeting her Republican rival Donald Trump. The latter was at the same time in Washington, where he addressed a pro-Israel organization at a rally to combat anti-Semitism.

Defense of Israel

Accusing Kamala Harris of not having defended Israel after the deadly attack, of an unprecedented scale, by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on October 7, Donald Trump assured that it was in Israel’s interest that she be beaten in the presidential election.

“Any Jewish person who votes for her needs to have their head examined,” the Republican added. The 59-year-old Democrat, for her part, answered a series of questions delivered in a very favorable manner by Oprah Winfrey, 70, on topics such as immigration, the cost of living and abortion.

In an emotional moment, the candidate hugged 15-year-old high school student Natalie Griffith, who was seriously injured when a 14-year-old student opened fire at their school near Atlanta, killing four people on September 4.

Harris army

Kamala Harris confirmed that she has a gun in her home. “If someone breaks into my house, they’re going to get shot,” she said, before laughing: “I probably shouldn’t have said that.”

Speaking via Zoom, Meryl Streep said she was worried about the danger that Donald Trump would once again refuse to acknowledge his possible defeat at the polls, as he did four years ago.

“I wonder if we’re ready for January 7th,” the actress said, referring to the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021 by supporters of the Republican billionaire in order to prevent the certification of Joe Biden’s election.

“Latest news”

Want to stay on top of the news? «24 heures» offers you two appointments per day, directly in your e-mail box. So you don’t miss anything that’s happening in your Canton, in Switzerland or in the world.

Other newsletters

Login

AFP

Found an error? Please report it to us.

0 comments