US senator Kamala Harris takes parting shot at Donald Trump after quitting Democratic presidential race

Senator Kamala Harris has dropped out of the race
REUTERS
Rebecca Speare-Cole4 December 2019

Democrat candidate Kamala Harris took aim at Donald Trump after she announced she was pulling out of the 2020 US presidential race.

The Californian senator announced that she would be abandoning her campaign before making a stinging parting shot at Mr Trump on Twitter.

The 55-year-old was pegged as a rising Democratic Party star but her campaign faltered as she struggled to raise money and cement a compelling case for her candidacy.

Mr Trump shared a tweet about her decision on Tuesday and wrote what appeared to be a sarcastic caption saying: "Too bad. We will miss you Kamala!"

In a dig about the ongoing impeachment proceedings into Mr Trump, Ms Harris responded: "Don't worry, Mr. President. I'll see you at your trial."

In a report released by the House Intelligence Committee, it was also claimed that the US president obstructed the impeachment investigation.

Mr Trump, who is in London for a Nato summit, has denied any wrongdoing and accused Democrats of using the impeachment process to overturn the results of the 2016 presidential election.

Announcing her withdrawal on Tuesday, Ms Harris said: "I’ve taken stock and looked at this from every angle, and over the last few days have come to one of the hardest decisions of my life.

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"My campaign for president simply doesn't have the financial resources we need to continue," Ms Harris said in an email to supporters on Tuesday.

"I'm not a billionaire," she added in a swipe at wealthy businessmen Tom Steyer and Michael Bloomberg, who are funding their own long-shot campaigns.

California Senator Kamala Harris speaks during a town hall devoted to LGBTQ issues
AFP via Getty Images

"And as the campaign has gone on, it's become harder and harder to raise the money we need to compete."

Her wavering views on how to solve the nation's healthcare problems and whether to embrace her past as a prosecutor were among the missteps that dragged down the campaign after its glitzy launch in January.

Kamala Harris joins a demonstration with striking McDonalds workers demanding a $15 minimum wage in Las Vegas
REUTERS

Her candidacy ultimately failed to resonate with African-American voters in the important early voting states of South Carolina and Nevada, and she polled poorly even in her home state of California.

Her support among Democrats and independents nationally slipped from 10 per cent in a June 28-July 2 poll to two per cent in the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll that ran between November 20-22, falling from the third most popular candidate to sixth in that span.

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The abrupt departure further narrows the field of White House contenders two months before voting begins in Iowa, the first nominating contest.

It underscores the difficulties of competing in a contest that once numbered more than two dozen Democratic candidates seeking the party's nod to run against the Republican president.

Ms Harris' withdrawal marked a sharp comedown for a candidate once portrayed as "the female Obama," a nod to the first black US president who remains hugely popular with Democratic voters.

If elected next November, Ms Harris would have been the first woman and second black US president.

Ms Harris had qualified for the party's next debate on December 19 in Los Angeles.

Other minority candidates still in the race have not yet met the polling and donor thresholds, meaning the stage could feature an all-white line-up after what was once the most diverse group of candidates in history.

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