ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
While Democratic leaders are coming here from all over the country to rally behind Vice President Kamala Harris at the party's National Convention, former President Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, are barnstorming key swing states. And Trump surrogates are also here in Chicago meeting with reporters on his behalf. Those reporters include NPR's Franco Ordoñez, who is here with me at the United Center. Hey, Franco.
FRANCO ORDOÑEZ, BYLINE: Hey, Ari.
SHAPIRO: What kind of counterprogramming have Republicans put in place?
ORDOÑEZ: The Trump campaign plans to do everything it can to disrupt the wave of momentum that Harris has enjoyed since becoming the nominee. Every day, Trump and JD Vance will be going to a different swing state. There will also be a theme every day - the economy, crime, national security, finishing up with border security. Trump actually spoke about the economy and energy this afternoon at an equipment manufacturer in York, Pa.
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DONALD TRUMP: When I left office, I handed Kamala and crooked Joe Biden a surging economy with no inflation. You had no inflation. You had -everything was good.
ORDOÑEZ: Tomorrow, Trump heads to the Detroit suburbs to talk about crime and safety. On Wednesday, he and Vance will be in North Carolina. On Thursday, he's going to talk about the border in Arizona. And he's going to finish off the week with an event in Nevada and another rally - or a rally in Arizona.
SHAPIRO: And what's the vibe? Like, paint a picture. What can we expect these events to look like as Trump and Vance travel across the country?
ORDOÑEZ: Yeah. I mean, they're going to be kind of different from the rallies that we've come to expect. These are gonna be smaller events, a few thousand people each. The campaign says that that is part of efforts to focus more on the issues that voters care about and are going to vote on in November. Of course, we have been reporting that allies have also been pressing Trump to spend more time on speaking about policy and less on personal attacks. So there is that as well. But Trump himself really hasn't changed much on that front. Today, he had this to say about Harris.
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TRUMP: Comrade Kamala Harris, you're fired
ORDOÑEZ: You know, Harris has, of course, also been focusing on economic policy. She's proposing stronger controls on price gouging in the food industry. Republicans, they are trying to frame Harris as a communist, really hoping that that label deters moderate voters.
SHAPIRO: You've met with some of the surrogates here in Chicago who are delivering Trump's message. What do they say?
ORDOÑEZ: Yeah, senators Rick Scott of Florida and Ron Johnson - Senator Ron Johnson as well are here in Chicago. You know, they are really here to enforce the theme of the day, which is the economy, of course. They touted their own business background and said Trump's own business sense is what's needed in the presidency, while likening those same Harris proposals as, you know, for price controls, again, as something that you'd see in a place like Cuba or Venezuela. Here's actually Senator Rick Scott talking about the contrasts.
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RICK SCOTT: Here's a choice. Donald Trump is a business guy, understands how businesses work. Harris has no earthly idea how businesses work. Her vice president pick has no idea how businesses work. They've not built businesses.
ORDOÑEZ: Congressman Byron Donalds will be in Chicago tomorrow. Congressman Michael Waltz will also be talking. Again, the Trump campaign really wants to steal any bit of the spotlight that it can away from Harris and her campaign. I mean, new polls are showing Harris is leading in some battleground states. And the Trump camp wants to do what it can to kind of end this honeymoon, the momentum that she's really been enjoying since becoming the nominee several weeks ago.
SHAPIRO: That is NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez here with me in Chicago. Good to see you, Franco.
ORDOÑEZ: Good to see you, Ari. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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