Harris hits the campaign trail in North Carolina as Biden isolates for COVID

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FAYETTEVILLE, NC — Vice President Harris gave one of her most forceful speeches of the campaign on Thursday, giving what amounted to a final argument against former President Donald Trump and his running mate on the final day of the Republican National Convention while President Biden isolated at home with COVID.

Harris, nodding to her past as a prosecutor, ran through a checklist of Republican positions and contrasted them with the Biden administration’s record, fact-checking some of Trump’s economic pledges along the way.

“We are not buying it. We are not falling for the okee-doke,” she said during the visit to a community known for one of the world's largest military bases, Fort Liberty, and a sizable surrounding community of military and veteran families.

Some Democrats see Harris as heir apparent should Biden drop out

Given the open questions about whether Biden should stay at the top of the Democratic ticket, Harris’ speech — in a state that Democrats had hoped they could turn blue this fall — is likely to draw more attention than it otherwise might.

Biden and his campaign are saying that he is not going anywhere. But some Democrats have said Harris would be the obvious pick for the party if Biden were to drop out of the race.

“Our campaign is not working through any scenarios where President Biden is not the top of the ticket. He is and will be the Democratic nominee,” deputy campaign chair Quentin Fulks told reporters in Milwaukee today, slightly exasperated at the line of questioning.

The campaign is working