By Ian Lenahan

Granite State News Collaborative

PORTSMOUTH — U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., gave a scathing review Thursday of President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, saying "our destinies are tied together" by the impact.

Speaking of ensuing racial injustices, as well as economic and health inequities and disparities, the congresswoman said, “However, all of these things have been exacerbated and worsened by this administration, while we have been drinking and drinking from this firehose of insult and assault to our senses, to our democracy, to our planet, to our humanity and to our peace of mind.”

Hosted in Portsmouth at the home of Pip and Tanna Clews, Pressley spoke to Democrats supporting the presidential ticket of former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Kamala Harris of California.

Earlier Thursday, Rep. Pressey met with University of New Hampshire students in Durham to promote strong voter turnout for the Nov. 3 election.

Tanna Clews kicked off the event by saying America needs figures in the White House who will support a lifestyle such as she and her wife, adding voters need to share stories of how they’ve been affected by the current administration to encourage them to vote for change.

“Tell them your personal story and if you don’t have that, tell them ours,” she said. “Tell them that you went to somebody’s house where they had these two cute kids and these chickens in the corner and this really idyllic yard, but they’re two women and they’re really worried about what might happen to them if Donald Trump is reelected.”

Cup Of Joe Coffee Bar owner Joanna Kelley spoke about how difficult it is for her voice to be heard as a Black, female small business owner. She called her identifiers “three things this current administration does not take seriously,” adding Biden and Harris want to take her representation into account.

“I am ready, like most of you, to feel like a valued citizen again. And I want to play a role in my democracy," Kelley said. "I am ready to have leadership that not only hears my voice but wants to hear my voice and cares about my voice.

Pressley echoed similar sentiments regarding the potential of a Democratic win to take over the White House, one she believes will act with empathy in their handling of COVID-19.

“We deserve, and will have in Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, an administration that has compassion for the American people and will not be cavalier about human life.

“It is devastating, the catastrophic loss of life, given the willful criminality of this administration.”

Republican National Committee spokesperson Nina McLaughlin released a statement about Pressley's campaign stops in New Hampshire for the Democratic ticket.

“If it wasn’t clear before, it is now: Joe Biden is simply an empty vessel for the radical policies of the far-left," McLaughlin said. "Ayanna Pressley, Joe Biden, and the rest of the socialist squad will ship our jobs overseas, cripple us with massive tax hikes, kill our affordable energy, and destroy our private health insurance.”

Pressley vocalized the importance in recognizing the power of a voter in impacting legislation on COVID-19 and addressing America’s civil rights uprising in recent months.

“We are still in the civil rights movement, and I’m counting on all of you to meet the moment. And because all of you are ‘Freedom Riders’ and you are justice seekers, we are not exempt from intimidation and suppression tactics,” she said.

Pressley likened the recent rise and recognition of the Proud Boys, an American white male supremacist group, to the Ku Klux Klan and its history of hatred against Black people. She compared fire hoses turned on Black people fighting for equal rights to mailboxes in contemporary America being set on fire in efforts to suppress votes in the general election.

She said when voters cast their ballots “it is the resistance of cruelty and corruption.”

“It is an affirmation of justice in every form… and we will know that we will have compassionate and committed partners in Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, who we will hold accountable,” she told the crowd.

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