Kamala Harris seeking what is possible in terms of common ground

Kamala Harris says she has evolved from a relatively liberal candidate during her first run for the White House in 2020 to a more centrist candidate today because she is “seeking what is possible in terms of common ground.”

“I believe in building consensus,” the Democratic presidential nominee said in a wide-ranging interview that aired on 60 Minutes on Monday, during which she was asked about her changing positions on issues ranging from economy to immigration.

“We are a diverse people, geographically, regionally, in terms of where we are in our backgrounds, and what the American people do want is that we have leaders who can build consensus, where we can figure out compromise and understand it’s not a bad thing, as long as you don’t compromise your values.”

Her appearance on 60 Minutes was part of a weeklong media blitz that will see Harris appear on programs that include The View, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and The Howard Stern Show.

On the issue of immigration, she was asked why the Biden administration did not move sooner to crack down on illegal immigration — a recurring criticism on the campaign trail from her Republican rival Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance.

“The policies that we have been proposing are about fixing a problem, not promoting a problem,” Harris said. Illegal border crossings have fallen off by half, she said, “but we need Congress to be able to act to actually fix the problem.”

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“In the last four years I have been vice president of the United States. And I have been traveling our country. And I have been listening to folks and seeking what is possible in terms of common ground. I believe in building consensus.“

Asked if President Joe Biden’s recent crackdown on asylum seekers was the right answer now, why didn’t the Biden-Harris administration take those steps in 2021, Harris said, “The first bill we proposed to Congress was to fix our broken immigration system, knowing that if you want to actually fix it, we need Congress to act. It was not taken up.”

“Fast forward to a moment when a bipartisan group of members of the United States Senate, including one of the most conservative members of the United States Senate, got together, came up with the border security bill,” she said.

Watch the 60 Minutes interview

“Well, guess what happened? Donald Trump got word that this bill was afoot and could be passed and he wants to run on a problem instead of fixing a problem, so he told his buddies in Congress, ‘Kill the bill. Don’t let it move forward,’” Harris said.

Asked if it was a mistake to loosen the immigration policies as much as they did, the Vice President said, “It’s a longstanding problem. And solutions are at hand. And from day one, literally, we have been offering solutions.”

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On the economy, Harris was pressed on how she would pay for economic promises like an expanded child tax credit and tax breaks for first-time homebuyers and new businesses.

A new report from the nonpartisan nonprofit Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that Harris’ estimated proposals would cost the government around $3.5 trillion, but Harris said she would offset that by raising taxes on corporations and the highest-earning Americans.

Harris also said she believes leaders in Congress are privately ready to listen to her.

“When you talk quietly with a lot of folks in Congress, they know exactly what I’m talking about,” she said, adding that there are “plenty of leaders in Congress who understand and know that the Trump tax cuts blew up our federal deficit.”

On foreign policy, Harris said she would not meet unilaterally with President Vladimir Putin of Russia about ending the war in Ukraine, suggesting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would need to be involved. “Ukraine must have a say in the future of Ukraine,” Harris said.