29 July: Former President Donald Trump launched a late-night online tirade following the release of a Fox News poll that showed Vice President Kamala Harris leading him in several key swing states.
The poll, conducted from July 22 to 24 and released on Sunday, revealed that Harris’s approval rating had surpassed Trump’s in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and Michigan. Notably, in Michigan, Harris held a significant lead, with a favorability rating of 57 percent compared to Trump’s 47 percent.
Predictably, the results provoked a strong reaction from Trump. Former Clinton White House aide Keith Boykin commented on X (formerly Twitter), “The ketchup is going to hit the wall in Mar-a-Lago after this new Fox News poll.”
Within hours, Trump shared five videos on Truth Social featuring one of his favored Fox News hosts, Mark Levin, who criticized Harris extensively. Levin, who Rolling Stone once described as a “bomb-throwing Trump sycophant,” launched a series of attacks on Harris in these videos.
In one clip from his show, Life, Liberty & Levin, Levin described Harris as a “rabid Marxist scholar,” taking issue with her past statements about equity, which she defined as ensuring everyone has access to the resources needed to succeed so that every citizen could “end up in the same place.” Levin equated this concept to a “prescription for tyranny and totalitarianism,” arguing that it’s “not the government’s job” to improve citizens’ quality of life.
In another video, Levin criticized Harris for her comparison of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to the Ku Klux Klan, accusing the agency of causing fear and intimidation in immigrant communities. Levin derided her comments, stating, “The combination of stupidity and arrogance is on full display, right here.”
Levin also erroneously referred to Harris as the “border czar,” a title she never held, furthering his critique of her role and policies.
Trump’s vehement response to the poll highlights his ongoing contention with Harris and the competitive landscape leading up to future elections.
