(NewsNation) — Former President Donald Trump returned to the campaign trail ahead of Tuesday night’s vice presidential debate between Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Trump spoke Monday in Valdosta, Georgia, a city damaged by Hurricane Helene. Vice President Kamala Harris cut her campaign visit to Las Vegas short to return to Washington for briefings on the hurricane, while President Joe Biden said he would travel to affected areas later this week.
The former president first spoke at a manufacturing facility in the Madison suburb of Waunakee. Later tonight he will be addressing supporters at Discovery World, a museum in Milwaukee, where he’s slated to be at 6 p.m.
Trump unsurprisingly criticized President Joe Biden and Harris for their handling of the conflict in the Middle East following Iran’s attack on Israel, as well as border sovereignty under their administration.
“Under my administration, we had no war in the Middle East, no war in Europe, we had harmony in Asia…,” Trump said in Waunakee.
“They are very close to global catastrophe,” he added. “We have a nonexistent president and a nonexistent vice president, who should be in charge…”
Currently, Trump trails Harris in the Badger State by 1.7 percentage points, according to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ polling averages.
In a statement issued before taking the stage in Waunakee, Trump’s campaign criticized the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of the Middle East conflict.
“When I was President, Iran was in total check,” the statement read. “They were starved for cash, fully contained, and desperate to make a deal.
“Kamala flooded them with American cash and, ever since, they’ve been exporting terror all over, and unraveling the Middle East.”
President Biden has yet to publicly speak out against the attack. Vice President Harris delivered remarks on Iran’s attack late Tuesday afternoon.
“I fully support President Biden’s order for the U.S. military to shoot down Iranian missiles targeting Israel, just as we did in April,” Harris said.
“My commitment to the security of Israel is unwavering, and let us be clear, Iran is not only a threat to Israel, [but] Iran is also a threat to American personnel in the region, American interest, and innocent civilians across the region who suffer at the hands of Iran-based and backed terrorist proxies.”
“We will never hesitate to take whatever action is necessary to defend U.S. forces and interests against Iran and Iran-backed terrorists. We will continue to work with our allies and partners to disrupt Iran’s aggressive behavior and hold them accountable,” she added.
Vice President Harris did not take questions from reporters.
