The two closing arguments show a stark choice between Trump and Harris.

NEW YORK (AP) — In the shadow of the White House, seven days before final votes are cast in the 2024 election. Kamala Harris vowed to put country before party and warned that Donald Trump is obsessed with revenge and self-interest.

Less than 48 hours ago inside Madison Square GardenTrump called his Democratic opponent “a train wreck who destroyed everything in his path.” His allies on stage called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” and said Harris, who would become the first female president, began her career as a prostitute.

Two nights and 200 miles apart, the dueling closing arguments outlined in stark terms the choices American voters will face on Nov. 5 as they weigh two vastly different visions of leadership and America’s future.

Trump’s rowdy rally, marked by crude and racial slurs, highlighted the ugliest elements of his coalition. But other parts highlight the former businessman’s appeal as a man who vows to fix the economy and borders, and as a political outsider eager to challenge any and all conventions, despite the risks.

Harris, who has served as vice president for the past four years, chose a more formal setting – a grassy ellipse outside the White House – to highlight the gravity of this moment in American history and the threat Trump poses to democracy. She faced a huge audience at the same venue where Trump addressed thousands of his supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, before they stormed the U.S. Capitol on one of the darkest days in modern history.

But Harris’ speech was more than just a reminder to voters of the danger Trump poses to US democracy. The purpose of Harris’s speech was to highlight her opponent’s habit of prioritizing his personal interests rather than the interests of the nation.

“Donald Trump spent a decade trying to keep the American people divided and fearful of each other. That’s who he is. But America, I’m here tonight to say: that’s not who we are,” Harris said. “I promise to be a president for all Americans—to always put country before party and before self.”

Senior adviser Jen O’Malley Dillon noted that Harris’s closing argument is aimed at reaching a narrow portion of undecided voters; Among them are many moderate Republicans.

“We know there are still many voters who are still trying to decide who to support — or whether to vote at all,” O’Malley Dillon said. “And this race is extremely close. We talk about this as a race to the margin. We know it will be closed this final week.”

Trump’s team is more focused on energizing his party’s base and reaching rare voters across the political spectrum who are disillusioned with the direction of the country and are looking for change.

Still, Trump has framed his comments in recent days with a simple question that cuts across political lines: He asks voters whether they are better off now than they were four years ago, at the end of his first term. Although the country was still reeling from the pandemic when Trump left office, polls show a majority of voters are dissatisfied with the current direction of the country.

Trump has vowed to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history and impose sweeping tariffs to raise revenue and boost American manufacturing.

Always defiant in the face of criticism even from some Republicans, Trump on Tuesday called his event at Madison Square Garden a “love fest” and did not respond to comments from pro-Trump comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.” Hinchcliffe also made derogatory jokes about blacks, other Latinos, Palestinians and Jews on his program before Trump took the stage.

“No one has ever had love like this,” Trump said of Sunday’s hours-long event, which was attended by members of his family, high-profile surrogates and supporters, including billionaire Elon Musk, TV psychologist “Dr. Phil” McGraw and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. “It was true love for our country.”

The former Republican president also gave a bleak assessment of Harris’ leadership on Tuesday. He said it had “erased” the country’s borders, “destroyed the middle class”, brought “bloodshed and squalor” to major cities and “unleashed war and chaos throughout the world”.

“No man who has caused so much destruction and death at home and abroad should ever be allowed to become president of the United States,” Trump told dozens of supporters gathered at his Florida estate.

Trump senior adviser Jason Miller said Trump has made clear his plans to rebuild the economy, secure the southern border and “improve people’s everyday lives.”

“Kamala Harris did no such thing,” he said. “It’s a message of desperation, personal attacks and nothing from Harris or her campaign about what they’re actually going to do to help Americans. So it’s a huge contrast.”

Harris has largely moved away from the “happy” campaign style that defined her presidential run this summer. On Tuesday night, she promised unity but also described Trump as a man driven more by revenge and grievances than by commitment to the people.

“This is a man who is unstable, obsessed with vengeance, consumed by resentment and seeking unchecked power,” Harris said. “This is not a presidential candidate who is thinking about how to make his life better.”

From time to time, she spoke directly to Republican voters and promised to listen to those who did not vote for her if elected. Harris previously said she would add a Republican to her cabinet.

“Unlike Donald Trump, I don’t believe that people who disagree with me are the enemy,” she said. “He wants to put them in jail. I will give them a seat at the table.

Ahead of the speech, the Democrat’s campaign was aware of criticism from her party’s far left that she was too focused on attracting moderate Republican voters. They called on Harris to focus more on working-class priorities rather than the threat Trump poses to American democracy.

Ultimately, the vice president’s speech was intended to tie the two issues together. She warned that Trump was threatening democratic norms and promised to take action against high food prices and help first-time homebuyers make down payments.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a top Harris ally, said voters could be “walking and chewing gum at the same time — meaning they could hear arguments about freedom and something that impacts their pocketbook.” And I think she’s certainly capable of doing both things at the same time.”

Sisters Michelle Detwiler and Renee Newell traveled from Virginia to attend Harris’ performance at the Ellipse.

“We both have daughters and we’re both here for them,” Newell said. Detweiler said the event’s location is “a great counterpoint to the image of January 6th. “The District of Columbia is a great city for peaceful public gatherings.”

“We are so happy to be here and experience joy,” she said.

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Associated Press writers Zeke Miller and Fatima Hussein in Washington and Jill Colvin in New York contributed.