Michelle Obama makes a public plea at the Kamala Harris Rally

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Michelle Obama challenged men to support Kamala Harris’ bid to become America’s first female president, warning at a rally in Michigan on Saturday that women’s lives would be at risk if Donald Trump were to return to the White House.

The former first lady described the attack on abortion rights as a harbinger of dangerous restrictions on women’s health care. Some men may be tempted to vote for Trump because of their anger at the slow pace of progress, Obama said, but “your anger doesn’t exist in a vacuum.”

“If we don’t get this election done right, your wife, your daughter, your mother, we as women are going to become collateral damage to your anger,” Obama said. “So are you as men willing to look into the eyes of the women and children you love and tell them that you supported this attack on our security?”

The Kalamazoo rally was Obama’s first appearance on the campaign trail since she spoke at the Democratic National Convention last summer, and her comments were poignant and passionate in their support of Harris.

“She has shown in every way that she is ready,” the former first lady said. “The real question is: are we as a country ready for this moment?”

Obama added: “Don’t buy into the lies that we don’t know who Kamala is or what she stands for. This is someone who understands all of you.”

Although Obama has been a reluctant campaigner over the years, she showed no hesitation Saturday as her speech stretched from the political to the personal. Obama said she fears for the country and struggles to understand why the presidential race is still close.

“I lay awake at night wondering, ‘What the hell is going on?’” she said.

With her voice shaking with emotion, Obama spoke about the struggle for women to understand and care for their own bodies, whether it’s their menstrual cycle or menopause. And she spoke about the dangers of childbirth, when a split-second decision can mean the difference between life and death for a mother and her baby.

“I ask all of you from the core of my being to take our lives seriously,” Obama pleaded.

Harris took the stage after Obama and promised the crowd that she would keep their interests in mind — unlike Trump, whom she accused of being only interested in himself.

“There is a longing in our country for a president who sees the people, not just looks in the mirror all the time, but sees the people, who understands you and who will fight for you,” she said.

After the meeting, Harris went to Trak Houz Bar & Grill with Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, where they had a locally brewed beer.

“I want to have what she has,” Harris said.

The politicians chatted and took pictures with people at the bar. As they approached a table of young women, one of them burst into tears.

Before Harris arrived in Kalamazoo, he visited a local doctor’s office in Portage to talk to health care providers and medical students about the impact of abortion restrictions. One said she is seeing patients coming from other parts of the country where there are strict restrictions on abortion, and another said she is concerned that people will not want to practice in important areas of medicine for fear of government interference .

“We are looking at a health care crisis in America that affects people of every background and gender,” Harris told reporters before visiting the doctor’s office.

Harris appeared with Beyoncé in Houston on Friday, and on Thursday she campaigned with former President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen in Atlanta.

It’s a level of celebrity influence that surpasses anything Trump, the Republican nominee, has managed to achieve this year. But there is no guarantee that Harris will help in the tight race for the White House. In 2016, Hillary Clinton lost to Trump, despite electrifying her audience with musical performances and Democratic allies.

Trump brushed off Harris’ attempt to leverage star power for her campaign.

“Kamala is at a dance with Beyoncé,” the former president said Friday in Traverse City, Michigan. Trump held a rally in the Detroit suburb of Novi on Saturday ahead of a later event in State College, Pennsylvania.

Saturday marks the first day early in-person voting became available across Michigan. More than 1.4 million ballots have already been submitted, representing 20% ​​of registered voters.

When Clinton ran against Trump, Michelle Obama inspired the Democrats with the slogan ‘when they go low, we go high’.

But this year she took a sharper approach at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. She accused Trump of “doubling down on ugly, misogynistic, racist lies as a substitute for real ideas and solutions that will actually improve people’s lives.”

While Harris was with Obama in Michigan, President Joe Biden visited the Laborers’ International Union of North America in Pittsburgh. He said Harris once walked a picket line with the United Auto Workers — “she has a spine like a ramrod” — while Trump has undermined organized labor.

“He sees unions as an obstacle to the accumulation of wealth for individuals,” Biden said. “It is in the interest of the labor movement to defeat Donald Trump more than any other race you have been in.”

Biden’s remarks to the predominantly male audience referenced the gender gap that has been a consistent feature of this year’s presidential race.

Biden said of Trump: “I’ll just say it straight: he’s a loser as a man.”

He also said women deserve more opportunities than they have received in the past.

“They can do anything any human being can do, including becoming president of the United States of America,” Biden said.