Kamala Harris: The 2024 60 Minutes Interview

Kamala Harris's Presidential Campaign

• Kamala Harris has been a presidential candidate for two and a half months, and with the election just 29 days away, she and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, face unrelenting attacks from Donald Trump in an extremely close race (7s).
• Harris discussed the escalating war in the Middle East, stating that the US must stop the conflict from spinning out of control, and that Israel has a right to defend itself, but the way it does so matters, as many innocent Palestinians have been killed (58s).
• The Biden-Harris Administration has pressed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to agree to a ceasefire, but he has resisted, and Harris urged him not to go into Lebanon, which he did anyway (1m43s).
• Harris believes the US has an important alliance with the Israeli people, but it seems Prime Minister Netanyahu is not listening to the US, and the administration will continue to pursue what is necessary to make clear their principles (2m31s).
• Harris acknowledged that the American economy is doing well by macroeconomic measures, but people are still feeling the effects of high prices, particularly with groceries being 25% higher, and she plans to deal with it by pressing Congress to pass a federal ban on price gouging for food and groceries (3m21s).
• Harris's economic plan includes expanding the child tax credit, giving tax breaks to first-time home buyers, and people starting small businesses, but it is estimated to add $3 trillion to the federal deficit over the next decade, and she argues that her plan would strengthen America's economy, while her opponent's plan would weaken it (3m56s).
• Harris was asked how she plans to pay for her economic plan, but she did not provide a direct answer, instead emphasizing the importance of investing in small businesses and the middle class to strengthen America's economy (4m41s).
• Kamala Harris plans to ensure the richest individuals and corporations pay their fair share of taxes, making the tax system more equitable for middle-class workers like teachers, nurses, and firefighters (4m44s).
• Harris believes there are leaders in Congress who understand the need to address the federal deficit caused by the Trump tax cuts and are willing to work towards strengthening America's economy (5m35s).
• As a public servant and capitalist, Harris acknowledges the limitations of government and aims to find common sense solutions through building consensus and compromise (5m55s).
• Despite being in government for decades, a quarter of registered voters still do not know Kamala Harris, which she attributes to the need to earn everyone's vote in the presidential election (6m16s).
• Harris' critics argue that she has changed her position on various issues, such as fracking, immigration policies, and Medicare for all, making it difficult for voters to understand what she truly believes in (6m55s).
• Harris responds to these criticisms by stating that she has been listening to people and seeking common ground during her time as Vice President, and that building consensus and finding compromise is essential for effective leadership (7m22s).

Economic Policies

• Harris acknowledged that the American economy is doing well by macroeconomic measures, but people are still feeling the effects of high prices, particularly with groceries being 25% higher, and she plans to deal with it by pressing Congress to pass a federal ban on price gouging for food and groceries (3m21s).
• Harris's economic plan includes expanding the child tax credit, giving tax breaks to first-time home buyers, and people starting small businesses, but it is estimated to add $3 trillion to the federal deficit over the next decade, and she argues that her plan would strengthen America's economy, while her opponent's plan would weaken it (3m56s).
• Harris was asked how she plans to pay for her economic plan, but she did not provide a direct answer, instead emphasizing the importance of investing in small businesses and the middle class to strengthen America's economy (4m41s).
• Kamala Harris plans to ensure the richest individuals and corporations pay their fair share of taxes, making the tax system more equitable for middle-class workers like teachers, nurses, and firefighters (4m44s).
• Harris believes there are leaders in Congress who understand the need to address the federal deficit caused by the Trump tax cuts and are willing to work towards strengthening America's economy (5m35s).

Funding the Economic Plan

• Harris was asked how she plans to pay for her economic plan, but she did not provide a direct answer, instead emphasizing the importance of investing in small businesses and the middle class to strengthen America's economy (4m41s).
• Kamala Harris plans to ensure the richest individuals and corporations pay their fair share of taxes, making the tax system more equitable for middle-class workers like teachers, nurses, and firefighters (4m44s).

Immigration Policies

• The Biden-Harris approach to immigration has been inconsistent, and Republicans consider it a weak point for Harris, who recently visited the southern border and supported President Biden's crackdown on asylum seekers (8m9s).
• Harris explains that her administration proposed a bill to fix the broken immigration system in 2021, but it was not taken up by Congress, and that a bipartisan border security bill was later introduced by a group of senators (8m43s).
• Donald Trump was informed about a bill that could be passed, and he instructed his allies in Congress to kill the bill instead of fixing the problem, as he wanted to run on the issue rather than resolve it (9m10s).
• The US experienced a historic flood of undocumented immigrants during the first three years of the current administration, with arrivals quadrupling from the last year of President Trump's term (9m33s).
• The current administration has proposed solutions to the immigration problem since day one, but the numbers did quadruple, and it is now claimed that the flow of illegal immigration has been cut in half (10m0s).
• The administration needs Congress to act to fix the problem, as the current policies aim to address the issue rather than promote it (10m16s).

Criticism of Donald Trump

• Kamala Harris has accused Donald Trump of using racist tropes, particularly regarding Haitian immigrants, birtherism, and Charlottesville, and has called him a racist and divisive (10m42s).
• Despite Trump's divisive comments, he still has the support of millions of Americans, and Harris believes that the American people want a leader who unites rather than divides (11m29s).
• Harris thinks that the true measure of a leader's strength is not based on who they beat down, but rather on who they lift up (11m44s).

Campaign and Endorsements

• The Harris campaign has been traveling across the country, with the vice president losing track of the number of states she has visited, and she is doing well despite the demanding pace (12m0s).
• Harris appeared at a rally in Wisconsin with Liz Cheney, a staunch conservative and one of Donald Trump's fiercest critics, who announced that she would be voting for Harris (12m18s).
• Cheney's endorsement was met with a chant of approval from the crowd, and Harris expressed her appreciation for the support (12m41s).
• Harris and Cheney's campaign appearance together would have been unlikely four years ago, but Cheney believes that the parties must come together to support Harris in defending the rule of law (13m5s).

Foreign Policy Challenges

• The winner of the presidency will face numerous challenges, including the economic competition with China and the war between Russia and Ukraine (13m21s).
• Harris is determined that the US must win the economic competition with China for the 21st century, and she believes that success in ending the war in Ukraine will require a more comprehensive approach (13m33s).
• Kamala Harris stated that she would not meet with President Vladimir Putin to negotiate a solution to the war in Ukraine without Ukraine's participation, emphasizing that Ukraine must have a say in its future (13m54s).
• Harris expressed support for Ukraine's ability to defend itself against Russia's unprovoked aggression and criticized Donald Trump's claim that he could end the war on day one, calling it a surrender (14m26s).

Gun Control Stance

• Harris revealed that she is a gun owner, specifically owning a Glock, which she obtained due to her background in law enforcement (14m52s).
• She confirmed that she has fired the gun at a shooting range (15m11s).

Tim Walz: The Vice-Presidential Candidate

• Tim Walz, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, was a relatively unknown figure outside Minnesota but has championed abortion rights, gun control, and other progressive ideas as governor of Minnesota (15m40s).
• Walz acknowledged that he and Kamala Harris may not agree on everything, but they have been working together as a team (16m11s).
• Walz addressed criticisms of embellishing or telling falsehoods about his military record and travels to Asia, describing himself as a "knucklehead" at times but not a pathological liar like Donald Trump (16m48s).
• Walz defended his record as governor of Minnesota, which has been criticized by former President Trump as "dangerously liberal" and "radical left," citing policies such as providing breakfast and lunch to schoolchildren and implementing paid family medical leave (17m48s).

Contrasting Approaches to Governance

• Kamala Harris was promoted by the business community, while Donald Trump spends his time tearing down states rather than lifting up their strengths (18m16s).
• Harris believes Trump's critiques are not only wrong but also lack a solution, and she is waiting to hear his proposed solutions (18m27s).
• Harris's running mate, Tim Walz, was chosen partly due to his optimistic personality, which is reflective of the people of Minnesota (18m32s).
• Before joining the ticket, Walz called Republicans "weird," which became a rallying cry for Democrats, and Harris believes this label stuck because it refers to the behaviors of being obsessed with people's personal lives and reproductive rights (18m52s).
• Harris thinks the "weird" label has become almost dangerous, as it dehumanizes people and goes beyond weird, and she advocates for debating policy in a real way and finding an objective truth (19m7s).

Final Remarks on the Election

• Harris and Walz are working hard to win the election on November 5th, hoping their arguments will give them a chance to cross the line ahead of Donald Trump and JD Vance (19m18s).
• The Trump campaign cancelled an interview they had agreed to participate in, which Harris believes shows that Trump is not willing to have a meaningful conversation with the American people (19m42s).
• Harris thinks that Trump's rallies are about himself and his personal grievances, and he does not talk about how he plans to bring the country together or find common ground (20m1s).
• Harris believes that the American people are ready to turn the page and move on from Trump's presidency (20m21s).