WASHINGTON — In her campaign against Republican Donald Trump, Vice President Kamala Harris says she will “proudly put my record against his any day of the week.” proposal is not that simple.
Republicans are reviving Harris’ past positions from her failed presidential campaign four years ago, blaming her for controversies under President Joe Biden’s administration. At the same time, Harris wants credit for accomplishments under Biden while charting her own course forward.
A look at some key topics and how Harris approached them.
Harris took several progressive stances on immigration when she sought to become the Democratic presidential nominee in 2020. She wanted to make immigrants in the country illegally eligible for government health care and decriminalize border crossings.
When Harris became Biden’s vice president, the administration unraveled some of Trump’s toughest immigration policies, and Harris worked to improve conditions in Central American countries to reduce the flow of migrants into the United States. However, illegal border crossings reached historic levels, creating a political crisis for the White House. Republicans have blamed Harris for not securing the border.
Biden ultimately imposed restrictions on asylum applications, which frustrated immigration advocates, but significantly reduce crossingsAccording to Harris’ campaign, the vice president also supports Biden’s request for more money for border security.
Democrats are divided over Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza. While the president has expressed concern about Palestinian deaths, he has also been a steadfast supporter of Israeli military operations, despite calls to halt U.S. arms shipments.
Harris has publicly adhered closely to the administration’s positions, but she has chosen other issues to emphasize. She has spoken about planning for the “day after” in Gaza, when extensive reconstruction would be necessary, and she has focused on the suffering of Palestinian civilians. The most recent example came after Harris met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week. “Israel has the right to defend itself, and how it does that matters,” she said.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, Biden and Harris have been stressing the need to restore abortion rights nationwide. The goal, they say, is to pass legislation if Democrats regain full control of Congress.
Harris and Biden, however, don’t always approach the issue the same way. As a lifelong Catholic who initially believed Roe v. Wade gone too farBiden rarely uses the word “abortion” and prefers to talk about protecting people from government interference in their lives.
Harris speaks much more bluntly on the subject, and they visited a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota earlier this year. The fight for abortion rights is expected to be a central part of her presidential campaign.
Harris began her career in elected office as San Francisco’s district attorney, and the politics of law enforcement have been turbulent over the years. After the killing of George Floyd in 2020, Harris praised the “defund the police” movement and questioned whether money was actually being spent on public safety.
The White House tried to reform the police, but the legislation stalled on Capitol Hill and Biden eventually agreed to the issuance of an executive orderThe administration also more money pumped in in local branches.
Now Harris is embrace her background in law enforcement She is running against Trump, the first former president to be convicted of a crime.
When Harris ran for the nomination in 2020, she said she would ban fracking and pursue the Green New Deal, a sweeping progressive effort to transition the country to renewable energy.
The White House took a more measured approach. The Inflation Reduction Act, which Biden signed, pumped $375 billion into the fight against climate change, mainly through creating financial incentives for clean technologies. US oil production also reached a record high even though Biden has also tried conservation efforts.
Harris’ campaign indicated that if elected this year, she would no longer try to stop fracking.
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Olga R. Rodriguez, an Associated Press editor in San Francisco, contributed to this report.