Emotional abortion discussion centers Oprah Winfrey’s Harris interview in Michigan

Updated at 12:02 p.m.

Vice President Kamala Harris joined Oprah Winfrey Thursday night in Michigan for a live-streamed “Unite for America” event aiming to maintain enthusiasm and support for the Democratic nominee in her race against former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.

Harris laid out early on her case for what was at stake in the election.

“Ultimately, the question before us is, what kind of country do we want to live in? And the beauty of a democracy, as long as we can hold on to it, the beauty of a democracy is each of us has the power,” she said. “We’re all here and you all are taking time out of your busy lives, everyone here, everyone on the screen, because there really is so much at stake.”

The event was held at Studio Center in Farmington Hills which boasts “one of the largest sound stages in the Midwest,” with several hundred invited guests in the audience, including U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing) and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. Several hundred thousand guests also joined online, along with a bevy of stars including comedian Chris Rock, and actors Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lopez, Tracee Ellis Ross, Bryan Cranston, Julia Roberts and Ben Stiller.

Winfrey hosted the 90 minutes of political theater, much like her immensely popular TV show, introducing various pre-produced segments and talking to a variety of Harris supporters from groups, like Black Women for Harris and White Dudes for Harris, as well Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

“This is going to be a big, close race,” said Whitmer. “Michigan is always tight. We know we’re feeling good, but we’ve got to translate that feeling into action. We deserve a leader who is strong and kind. It’s not mutually exclusive. And that’s why I think this moment is so important for all of us today, but for our kids and future generations, too.”

Harris, who arrived at Detroit Metro Airport, just after 5 p.m., was met on the tarmac by kids from the Boys and Girls Club of America dressed in football and cheerleading uniforms.

Also greeting the Vice President was Michigan Teamsters President Kevin Moore – Joint Council 43, which endorsed the Harris-Walz ticket on Wednesday almost immediately after the decision by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters’ executive board not to make an endorsement in the presidential race.

Harris wasn’t brought out until nearly a half-hour into the event and soon after started answering questions from the audience, beginning with what her plans were to secure the southern border.

Harris pointed to the bipartisan border security bill that was proposed earlier this year, but then scuttled after Trump told his allies in Congress to abandon it.

“It would have put 1,500 more border agents at the border. Let me tell you, those border agents are working around the clock,” she said. “It would have just been about giving them some support and relief, which is probably why the border agents actually endorsed the bill.”

When Winfrey asked Harris if she planned to reintroduce it if elected, she didn’t hesitate to say she would.

“Absolutely. And when I am elected president of the United States, I will make sure that bill gets to my desk and I will sign it into law,” she said.

Perhaps the most emotional point of the program revolved around the issues of abortion and gun violence.

In the audience were the mother and sisters of Amber Nicole Thurman of Georgia, a single mother of a 6-year-old boy who a ProPublica report this week revealed died in 2022 after doctors delayed providing her care due to concerns over that state’s restrictive abortion law.

“Initially, I did not want the public to know my pain,” said Thurman’s mother, Shanette. “I wanted to go through in silence, but I realized that it was selfish. I want y’all to know Amber was not a statistic. She was loved by a family, a strong family, and we would have done whatever to get my baby, our baby, the help that she needed. You’re looking at a mother that is broken.”

Harris paused before responding.

“I’m just so sorry, and the courage that you all have shown is extraordinary because also you just learned about how it is that she died,” she said and then explicitly connected the context of Thurman’s death to Trump’s presidency

“The former president chose three members of the United States Supreme Court with the intention that they would overdo the protections of Roe v. Wade. And they did as he intended, and in state after state, including yours, these abortion bans have been passed that criminalize health care providers, in a couple of states, prison for life, Oprah.”

Harris further detailed how allowing states like Georgia to criminalize reproductive rights has completely disrupted the doctor patient relationship.

“Literally a doctor or a nurse has to say, ‘She might die any minute, better give her now care, because otherwise I might go to prison for life,’ she said. “Think about what we’re doing in terms of saying that certain people who are in these state houses and then starting with the former president of the United States think they’re in a better position than a doctor or a nurse to determine when their patient needs medical care. This literally, in Amber’s story, highlights the fact that among everything that is wrong with these bans and what has happened in terms of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, it’s a health care crisis that affects the patient and the profession.”

Winfrey jumped in and expressed incredulousness at the intrusion into such personal matters.

“I just don’t believe that those legislators, that the government has a right to be in your womb. They have no right to be in your womb, with decisions about your womb,” she said.

Harris responded by noting that respecting personal health choices did not mean one had to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs.

“If she chooses, she will talk with her priest, her pastor, her rabbi, her imam, but not the government telling her what’s in her best interest,” said Harris.

Also in the audience was Hadley Duvall, a 22-year-old from Kentucky who spoke at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last month about her story of being sexually abused by her stepfather and becoming pregnant at age 12. She said she had the option of abortion, which many others like her no longer have.

“You can’t wait until it’s too late to care about reproductive health care, because then it’s too late,” she said. “And when it affects you, it hits. And you can’t deny it. You can’t look at someone with a story like mine and say it didn’t happen. And there are more people like me out there, and there are going to be so many more who deserve their options. They deserve their choices. Let’s get involved.”

The topic of gun violence was focused on the epidemic of school shootings, with the most recent one taking place at Apalachee High School in Georgia earlier this month, killing four and injuring nine others.

One of those who survived was 15-year-old Natalie Griffith, who was shot twice. Despite that, she and her parents, Doug and Marilda, were in the audience.

Marilda Griffith, acknowledging how fortunate she was that her daughter survived, made a tearful plea that something be done.

“No parent should go through this. You know, what are we doing about this? What are we doing? Let’s make sure that everybody listens. Let’s make sure that everybody hears it. The whole world needs to hear that we women that have our children, we have a job. That job is to protect our children,” she said. “I’m ready to make a noise about this.”

Harris said that the issue remains unresolved because of what she called a “false choice” that has been pushed by Republicans suggesting you’re either in favor of the Second Amendment or you want to take everyone’s guns away.

“I’m in favor of the Second Amendment, and I’m in favor of assault weapons bans; universal background checks; red flag laws. And these are just common sense. These are just common sense,” she said.

Winfrey also expressed surprise when Harris reiterated that she’s a gun owner and then said, “If somebody breaks into my house, they’re getting shot.” She laughed then said her staff will have to deal with the fallout of her off-the-cuff-remark.

At one point, Streep joined in virtually and unapologetically called Harris “Madam President,” to which Harris responded, “47 days” to laughter and applause from the audience. Streep, however, got serious and asked Harris what would happen if she wins and Trump doesn’t accept the results, an outcome that played out in 2020 and ultimately resulted in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection attempt.

Harris said that one of the things she’s discovered in the course of her campaign is that many more of Trump’s supporters than people may realize decided Jan. 6 was where their support ended.

“When we reflect and think about what Jan. 6 was, where the president of the United States sitting in the Oval Office incited a violent mob to attack the United States Capitol, such that a 140 law enforcement officers were injured, some were killed, to try and upend a free and fair election where the American people voted; that was a bridge too far for a lot of people,” she said.

While Harris didn’t deal in any specifics of Trump not accepting the results of this election, she did say “the lawyers are working,” and encouraged people to talk to family members and others in their community to stop misinformation from spreading and standing up for election workers.

As she has done before in speeches, Harris ended the program on an upbeat note, talking about the privilege of being an American.

“We are an optimistic people. Americans, by character, are people who have dreams and ambitions and aspirations. We believe in what is possible. We believe in what can be, and we believe in fighting for that,” she said. “One of the greatest expressions of patriotism is to fight for the ideals of who we are, which includes freedom to make decisions about your own body, freedom to be safe from gun violence, freedom to have access to the ballot box, freedom to be who you are and to love who you love openly and with pride, freedom to just be. And that’s who we are. We believe in all that. And so this is a moment where we stand knowing what we are fighting for. We’re not fighting against. It’s what we’re fighting for.”

This story was updated to correctly list the groups supporting the Harris campaign.

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