Biden, Harris tout party unity as Trump turns his fire on Democrats

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have made an upbeat show of unity as they held their first joint public event since Harris replaced the president as the Democratic Party's candidate in November's election.

Chants of "Thank you Joe!" rang out from the audience at a community college in the Maryland suburbs outside Washington on Thursday.

Biden announced a major deal to reduce medication prices for retirees on social welfare programs.

"She can make one hell of a president," Biden said of Harris.

Shortly after the joint appearance, Trump delivered often angry remarks from his New Jersey golf club, before taking questions from a handful of journalists.

Harris has a "very strong communist lean" and will mean the "death of the American dream," he said.

At a later event with Jewish supporters, Trump turned his fire on Harris, claiming she has "maneuvered" to get support from "venomous anti-Semites in her party."

Harris is married to a Jew who, if she wins election, would make history as the first Jewish spouse of a US president — as well as the first man in the role.

Biden lame duck

For Biden, Thursday's event was half victory lap, half acknowledgment that he is entering his presidency's lame duck period.

Harris, 59, is set to be crowned as Democratic nominee at the party convention in Chicago next week.

But she made a display of vice presidential deference, delivering only short remarks to introduce Biden and stressing that it has been her honor to serve under the "most extraordinary human being."

"There's a lot of love in this room for our president," she said to cheers.

Biden appeared energised, drawing cheers when he said the Democrats' plan was to "beat the hell out of" Republican opponents and he prompted laughter on pretending not to know Trump's name — "Donald Dump or Donald whatever."

The drug prices deal will reduce costs for retirees on 10 key medicines, including treatments for diabetes, heart failure and blood clots.

Americans face the highest prescription drug prices in the world, leaving many people to pay at least partly out of their own pocket, despite already exorbitant insurance premiums.

On Friday, Harris will for the first time lay out details of her economic platform.

The United States' first female, Black and South Asian vice president is expected largely to stick to Biden's economic agenda while trying to differentiate herself, avoiding voter wrath over the post-Covid pandemic surge in inflation.

While Trump has long polled more strongly on the economy, a recent poll from the Financial Times and University of Michigan found voters trust Harris more on the issue, by 42 to 41 percent.

Trump, who survived an assassination attempt on July 13, is now the oldest presidential nominee in US history.