Kamala Harris criticised for laughing after voter calls Trump’s actions ‘mentally retarded’

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has been criticised for laughing after a voter called Donald Trump’s actions “mentally retarded.”

The Californian senator was speaking at a campaign event on Friday when she was asked by an audience member how she would respond to Trump’s presidency.

The voter said:

I don’t buy the argument that impeachment does not make sense. I don’t buy that argument.

There needs to be accountability. What are you going to do in the next one year to diminish the mentally retarded actions of this guy?

Harris’ response - laughing and saying “Well said” after the comment - was condemned by commentators on both the political left and right.

When asked later in the day about the slur, Harris denounced the term and pointed to her advocacy work for people with disabilities.

But when she was pressed on why she didn’t correct the man at the time, she replied:

I… heard him talk about the other stuff and then that came later, and it was not something that I really heard or processed or… in any way condone, that’s for sure.

It's honestly not a very convincing denial.

However, the 2020 candidate repeated the line on her Twitter account yesterday.

Although Harris was polling between 10-15 per cent in June and July after an impressive debate performance against former vice president Joe Biden, she has fallen back in recent Democratic primary polls.

Recent data shows Harris polling at about 7 per cent while senator Elizabeth Warren has become a serious challenger to Biden.

Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders has held at about 17 per cent, putting him among the top candidates.

Of course, there is still a long way to go in the primary race.

The first vote for Democratic members is the Iowa caucus on 3 February and the national election is not until November 2020.

HT: HuffPost

More: 2020 presidential hopeful Kamala Harris explains why Trump is a 'predator' and a 'coward'