MIAMI (AP) — Donald Trump on Wednesday was asked to name three virtues of his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris, a week after Harris was asked to do the same for the Republican nominee.
His answer sounded a lot like hers.
“That’s a very hard question," Trump said at the end of a town hall-style event hosted by Univision, the nation’s largest Spanish-language network. “That’s the toughest question. The other ones are easy.”
Trump first said Harris had “harmed our country horribly” before complimenting what he said was her “ability to survive.”
Then came the jab.
“Because she was out of the race,” Trump said, referring to Harris’ early departure from the 2020 Democratic presidential nominating campaign and her replacement this summer of President Joe Biden atop the 2024 ticket. “And all of a sudden she’s running for president.”
He also noted that “she seems to have some pretty long-time friendships” and that “she seems to have a nice way about her.”
“I like the way, you know, some of her statements, some of her — the way she behaves in a certain way,” he said. “But in another way, I think it's very bad for our country.”
Asking major-party candidates to say something nice about the other is a presidential tradition, sometimes leading to memorable moments and quips. But Trump and Harris don't know each other personally, only having me publicly at their September debate. And in a tense election in which both sides have called the other a threat to democracy, neither candidate is under much pressure from their supporters to offer a compliment.
Harris last week said Trump’s approach to politics “pains me,” singling out what she called his “us-versus-them” approach and adding “I don’t think that’s healthy for our nation and I don’t admire that.”
She eventually offered, “I think Donald Trump loves his family and I think that’s very important,” only to continue, “But I don’t really know him. I only met him one time...so I don’t really have much more to offer you.”
Both Trump and Harris were questioned by the same audience member, 48-year-old Teresa Djedjro, who attended both events.
Eight years ago, when a voter asked Trump and his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, to say something each respected about the other, Clinton offered to answer first, saying she respected Trump’s children, whom she called “incredibly able and devoted.”
Trump called it a “very nice compliment,” then said, “I will say this about Hillary: she doesn’t quit, she doesn’t give up. I respect that.”
Both candidates, however, said they disagreed with the other on most everything.
Beaumont reported from Des Moines, Iowa.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, arrives at Trenton-Mercer Airport, in Mercer County, New Jersey, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, en route to a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump listens to an audience question during a Univision town hall, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, in Doral, Fla., with Televisa's Enrique Acevedo, standing right. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a Univision town hall, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a commercial break during a Univision town hall, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The extended family of Erik and Lyle Menendez will advocate for the brothers' release from prison during a news conference Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles as prosecutors review new evidence to determine whether they should be serving life sentences for killing their parents.
More than a dozen family members traveled across the country to call for the brothers' release in Los Angeles — the largest gathering of relatives since their 1996 sentencing. The news conference is taking place less than two weeks after LA County District Attorney George Gascón announced his office was looking at the brothers' case again.
Erik Menendez, now 53, and his 56-year-old brother, Lyle Menendez, are currently incarcerated in state prison without the possibility of parole after being convicted of killing their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion more than 35 years ago.
Lyle Menendez, who was then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, admitted they fatally shot-gunned their entertainment executive father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez, in 1989 but said they feared their parents were about to kill them to prevent the disclosure of the father’s long-term sexual molestation of Erik.
While some family members are calling for their release, Kitty Menendez’s brother, Milton Anderson — who is 90-years-old — said through an attorney that he believes “the appropriate sentence” is life in prison without possibility of parole. Anderson was not available for an interview.
“He believes that there was no molestation that occurred. He believes that the motive was pure greed, because they had just learned that they were going to be taken out of the will,” said Kathy Cady, Anderson’s attorney.
The extended family’s attorney Bryan Freedman previously said they strongly support the brothers’ release.
“She wishes nothing more than for them to be released,” Freedman said earlier this month of Joan VanderMolen, Kitty Menendez’s sister and the brothers’ aunt.
In court Wednesday, comedian Rosie O’Donnell plans to join the family.
Earlier this month, Gascón said there is no question the brothers committed the 1989 murders, but his office will be reviewing new evidence and will make a decision on whether a resentencing is warranted in the notorious case that captured national attention.
The brothers’ attorneys said the family believed from the beginning they should have been charged with manslaughter rather than murder. Manslaughter was not an option for the jury during the second trial that ultimately led to the brothers’ murder conviction, attorney Mark Geragos previously said.
The case has gained new traction in recent weeks after Netflix began streaming the true-crime drama “ Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. ”
The new evidence includes a letter written by Erik Menendez that his attorneys say corroborates the allegations that he was sexually abused by his father. A hearing was scheduled for Nov. 29.
Prosecutors at the time contended there was no evidence of any molestation. They said the sons were after their parents’ multimillion-dollar estate.
But the brothers have said they killed their parents out of self-defense after enduring a lifetime of physical, emotional and sexual abuse from them. Their attorneys argue that because of society’s changing views on sexual abuse, that the brothers may not have been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole today.
Jurors in 1996 rejected a death sentence in favor of life without parole.
Attorney Mark Geragos informs the media on developments on the case of brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez, both serving life sentences for the murder of their parents in 1989, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jaimie Ding)
FILE - Lyle Menendez looks up during testimony in his and brother Erik's retrial for the shotgun slayings of their parents, Oct. 20, 1995 in Los Angeles. (Steve Grayson/Pool Photo via AP, File)
FILE - Erik Menendez, center, listens to his attorney Leslie Abramson, as his brother Lyle looks on in a Beverly Hills, California, May 17, 1991. (AP Photo/Julie Markes, File)
FILE - An Oct. 31, 2016, photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Erik Menendez, left, and a Feb. 22, 2018 photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Lyle Menendez. (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation via AP, File )
Menendez brothers' family to push for their release as prosecutors review 1989 case
Menendez brothers' family to push for their release as prosecutors review 1989 case
FILE - Lyle, left, and Erik Menendez sit with defense attorney Leslie Abramson, right, in Beverly Hills Municipal Court during a hearing, Nov. 26, 1990. (AP Photo/Nick Ut, File)
