Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison took shots at Republicans and defended President Joe Biden's record as Democrats blitz Wisconsin ahead of Wednesday night's GOP primary debate.
Harrison said Republican presidential hopefuls offered only a message of fear, comparing the debate to a Stephen King movie.
"When you listen to the debate tomorrow, it is all is going to be fear 24/7, all the time, right? It is going to be like watching a Stephen King movie, right? That is all that you are going to see from the Republican Party," he said while speaking with key constituencies Tuesday in Wisconsin.
ABC News was given access to all the stops on Harrison's tour, which were not media events, and followed him from Milwaukee to Waukesha to Madison, as he spoke at events targeting Black, female and young voters — key constituencies for the Democratic Party.
The DNC chair said the debate would break "a Guinness Book of World Record … for the most lies told in a certain period."
"I read 'Pinocchio' to my little guy the other day," he added. "Well, you're going to have a stage full of Pinocchios."
Jaime Harrison speaks at the DNC Winter Meeting in Philadelphia on Feb. 4, 2023.Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images, FILE
In a sign of how forcefully Democrats are trying to claw back some of the airtime that's expected to be dominated by the debate, Harrison stepped away from his first event to do a local radio interview before returning, only to have to quickly wrap up to lead a press call.
The Wisconsin Republican Party said the debate will put the party's "great alternatives" to Biden on full display.
"Republicans will be showcasing our beautiful state, extraordinary businesses, and many GREAT alternatives to [Biden] with the first GOP debate," the Wisconsin Republican Party said.
Harrison later reassured voters gathered at the Waukesha Democratic Party's headquarters that the national party would make the battleground state a priority in the election.
"I'm gonna be here because Wisconsin, in general, is at the center of the political universe," Harrison said. "We saw in 2016 that if you don't do the engagement what happens and what we inherit," Harrison added.
Former President Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the state in 2016 by a knife's edge, a win that helped propel him to the presidency. Biden then won the state in 2020.
Harrison also defended Biden amid criticism of his handling of the Maui wildfires and argued Democrats have a better understanding of voters' concerns about abortion rights.
"What the Republicans don't understand is with their bad actions what they have done is they have awoken a giant, and that giant are all the women in this room and the women across this country. Because even in the reddest of red states, even in states like Kansas and Ohio, and all of these other states, women- not just Democratic women- women have stood up and said enough is enough. That we want to control our own bodies, that we don't believe politicians should make those decisions for us," he said.
Democrats will be watching the GOP debate to see how policy issues like abortion and Social Security are discussed.
On stage Wednesday night in Milwaukee will be Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum also qualified, but a visit to the emergency room Tuesday night following a basketball injury left his status for the debate unclear.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
