WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris defended her values on Thursday in her first major interview since launching her presidential campaign just over a month ago and promised to appoint a Republican to her Cabinet if elected.
Harris, who rose to the top of the Democratic ticket after President Joe Biden withdrew his candidacy in July, spoke for about 30 minutes with CNN’s Dana Bash in Savannah, Georgia, with her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, at her side.
The interview came a week after Harris formally adopted the party’s nomination at the Democratic Party Convention in Chicago. Harris recently came under criticism for not having participated in an unscheduled interview with a major news channel.
Harris and Walz sat down with the station’s news anchor on Thursday afternoon in Georgia during a break on the couple’s two-day bus tour through the southeast of the swing state.
Harris told Bash she envisions building an “economy of opportunity” for the middle class, including increasing the child tax credit to up to $6,000, giving first-time home buyers a $25,000 tax credit and combating “price gouging,” which Harris attributed to high food prices.
The vice president listed Democrats’ accomplishments under Biden, including capping the price of insulin and reducing child poverty through a fleeting expansion of the child tax credit during the pandemic that eliminated the work requirement and paid families in monthly installments.
“I would say this is good work. There is more to be done, but it is good work,” Harris said.
The CNN host pressed Harris on changes in her policy positions, including immigration and fracking.
Republicans have criticized Harris’ past comments, accusing her of changing her tone to appeal to more centrist voters. Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday called her “FLIP-FLOPPING KAMALA” on his Truth Social platform, where the current Republican presidential candidate posts multiple times a day.
“Let me be clear: In this race, I am the only person who has prosecuted transnational criminal organizations that traffic in guns, drugs, and people,” Harris said when asked about her previous stance on decriminalizing the border. “I am the only person in this race who has actually served a border state as an attorney general to enforce our laws, and I will continue to enforce our laws as president, I recognize the problem.”
Harris also defended her shift from anti-fracking to pro-fracking.
“I think the most important and meaningful aspect of my political perspective and decisions is that my values have not changed. I have always believed and worked to recognize that the climate crisis is real,” Harris said.
Despite the attacks from Republicans, Bash pointed out that there were a number of speakers from the Republican camp at the Democratic convention.
At Bash’s suggestion, Harris said it would be “a win for the American public” if she appointed a Republican to her cabinet if elected – but she did not name any names.
“I have spent my career promoting diversity of opinion. I think it is important to have people with different views and experiences at the table when making some of the most important decisions,” she said.
Harris rejects Trump’s insults
The interview revealed to many that Harris and Trump have never met in person. They will do so for the first time on Debate phase on September 10, an event that will be broadcast on ABC News.
Regarding her opinion on Trump, Harris told Bash that the former president was “diminishing the character and strength of what defines us as Americans.”
When Bash asked Harris to respond to Trump’s attacks, including question their raceThe Vice President only addressed them briefly.
“Same old, hackneyed script, next question please,” she said.
Bash then turned to the subject of the war between Israel and Hamas, to which Harris responded that she was “clear and unwavering in her commitment to defending Israel and its ability to defend itself,” adding that it “matters how it does so.”
She reiterated her call for a peace agreement that includes the release of hostages still held by Hamas.
“Not only is an agreement the right thing to do to end this war, but it will also unlock much of what needs to happen next. I have remained committed since October 8 to what we need to do to work toward a two-state solution where Israel is secure and Palestinians equally have security, self-determination and dignity.”
Walz defense
Bash asked Walz to respond to the controversy surrounding his description of his military service, which spanned more than two decades in the Army National Guard but never included combat deployments. Questions arose when Walz said he carried weapons “in war” in a 2018 video in which he discussed gun violence. after to the Associated Press.
Walz, who also worked as a public school teacher and high school football coach, said he made mistakes and his “grammar was not always correct.”
“I wear my feelings on my sleeve and I speak particularly passionately about our children being shot in schools and around guns. So I think people know me. They know who I am. They know where my heart is, and again, my past has been known for over 40 years and speaks for itself,” Walz said.
Bash also asked Walz about his confusion in describing his and his wife’s fertility method. He said It was an in vitro fertilization – a Theme This has divided anti-abortion activists among themselves – while in reality the couple used artificial insemination.
Walz told Bash, “I clearly own my mistakes when I make them.”
“I’ve talked about our infertility problems because it’s hell and the families know that. And I’ve talked about the treatments that were available to us that gave us these beautiful children. That’s quite a contrast to the people who are trying to take away those rights,” he said.
Shortly before the end of the interview, Trump posted the words “BORING!!!” on his platform Truth Social.
