Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, sat down for her first interview since launching her campaign, appearing on CNN on August 29.
During the interview, Harris defended her evolving positions on fracking and border security while addressing the Biden administration’s economic record.
Conducted by CNN’s Dana Bash at a black-owned restaurant in Savannah, Georgia, the interview came just 67 days before the general election and less than two weeks ahead of the upcoming presidential debate.
Harris sought to clarify her stance on key issues, insisting that despite changes in her policy positions, “my values have not changed.”
Fracking and Border Security: Harris Under Fire
During the interview, Bash confronted Harris about her altered stance on fracking, a hot-button issue she had aggressively opposed during her 2019 presidential bid.
In the past, Harris decisively supported banning fracking, but on Thursday, she reiterated her commitment to allowing the practice, stating, “As vice president, I did not ban fracking, as president I will not ban fracking.”
Harris pointed to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which she claims has successfully driven investment in renewable energy without needing to ban fracking, as evidence of her consistency.
On border security, another contentious issue, Harris faced tough questions about her past support for decriminalizing illegal border crossings, a position she took during a 2019 Democratic primary debate.
Bash pressed Harris on the Biden administration’s failure to address the border crisis sooner, citing the record number of illegal immigrants apprehended during Biden’s presidency.
In response, Harris said, “I believe there should be consequence. We have laws that have to be followed and enforced that address and deal with people who cross our border illegally.” She also insisted that her efforts have reduced crossings from regions like El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.
Former President Donald Trump was quick to criticize Harris’s remark. “COMRADE KAMALA HARRIS AND BIDEN DESTROYED OUR BORDER. I WILL REBUILD IT, AND MAKE IT STRONG AGAIN,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Economic Policies
Harris also defended the Biden administration’s economic policies, which she dubbed “Bidenomics,” despite widespread dissatisfaction among Americans struggling with high prices for gas, groceries, and other essentials.
When asked if she stands by Biden’s economic record, Harris pointed to achievements such as capping insulin prices, extending Trump’s child tax credit, and bringing back 800,000 manufacturing jobs.
However, she acknowledged that “prices are still too high” and laid out her plans to tackle price gouging and housing affordability, all while sidestepping the question of whether Americans might prefer the economic conditions under Trump.
Harris’s economic proposals, including an “opportunity economy” plan that would raise taxes on corporations and the wealthy, have been labeled by critics as “21st-century socialism.”
Economist Daniel Lacalle warned that her policies could lead to more inflation and a significant increase in the national debt, which has already ballooned by over $7 trillion since the start of the Biden-Harris administration.
Harris’s Record Under Scrutiny
The interview also revealed Harris’s efforts to appeal to moderate voters, including her claim that she would appoint a Republican to her cabinet in the interest of “diversity of opinion.”
However, Harris’s record as California’s attorney general, where she faced accusations of targeting conservative organizations and infringing on First Amendment rights, raises questions about the sincerity of her commitment to diverse viewpoints.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Harris’s running mate, joined the interview to defend his military record and past statements on fertility treatments, though his comments were met with skepticism from critics, including Trump.
Walz’s controversial claims about his service and the use of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) were seen by some as another example of the ticket’s propensity to stretch the truth.
Trump’s Reaction
Trump took to Truth Social to criticize the CNN interview.
“I just saw Comrade Kamala Harris’ answer to a very weakly-phrased question, a question that was put in more as a matter of defense than curiosity, but her answer rambled incoherently, and declared her “values haven’t changed.” On that I agree, her values haven’t changed – The Border is going to remain open, not closed, there will be Free Healthcare for Illegal Aliens, Sanctuary Cities, No Cash Bail, Gun Confiscation, Zero Fracking, a Ban on Gasoline-Powered Cars, Private Healthcare will be abolished, a 70-80% tax rate will be put in place, and she will Defund the Police. America will become a WASTELAND!”