Donald Trump unleashed a barrage of attack lines Wednesday against his likely new opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, whom he called his “new victim to defeat” and accused of deceiving the public about President Joe Biden’s ability to run for a second term, writes AP NEWS.

The rally in Charlotte, North Carolina marked his first public campaign event since Biden dropped out of the 2024 matchup and Harris became the Democrats’ likely nominee.

“So now we have a new victim to defeat: Lyin’ Kamala Harris,” Trump said, labeling her “the most incompetent and far-left vice president in American history”. Trump called her a “radical left lunatic” and said she was “crazy” for her positions on abortion and on immigration. He also mispronounced her first name repeatedly, a denigrating approach to the first Black woman and person of South Asian descent likely to lead a major party’s presidential ticket.

Trump’s speech signaled the next stage for the campaign may be especially brutal and personal, even as some GOP leaders warned Republican allies not to use overtly racist and sexist attacks against Harris. Trump has ramped up his criticism of the vice president since Biden’s abrupt departure, calling Harris “the same as Biden but much more radical”.

He blamed her for what he portrays as the Biden administration’s failures, particularly security along the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump also accused Harris of being just as responsible for Biden’s policies at the U.S.-Mexico border, which saw illegal crossing arrests reach record highs at the end of 2023 and repeated his pledge to conduct mass deportations with the help of local police: “Kamala’s deadly destruction of America’s borders is completely and totally disqualifying. She shouldn’t be allowed to run for president with what she’s done”.