Highlights from the first Harris-Walz interview

In her first interview since running for president, Vice President Kamala Harris laid out her stance on key issues.

The Democratic candidate was asked why his policies on immigration and climate have become more moderate since he ran for president in 2019.

“The most important and meaningful aspect of my policy views and decisions is that my values ​​have not changed,” she told CNN’s Dana Bash.

She also pledged to “turn the page” on the divisive rhetoric of the Trump era in a joint interview with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

Her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, called the interview “boring!!!” on Truth Social after the interview and described Ms. Harris as a fraud.

The vice president had to defend the White House’s economic performance as inflation and higher living costs continued to hit Americans.

When asked why she had not yet implemented her ideas to address the economic hardship, she replied that while she had already done a lot of good, there was still much more to be done.

Polls show that voters like the way Trump is handling the economy.

Here are some key takeaways from the interview:

She has been urged to shift from her liberal stance to a more moderate policy stance, but says her values ​​remain consistent, citing her commitment to tackling climate change as an example.

Asked about her changing stance on banning fracking, a technology to extract gas and oil from shale rock, she said she was confident the U.S. could meet its climate goals without a ban.

The Republicans’ main line of attack is to brand Ms. Harris an extremist, citing her 2019 comments as evidence.

At the time, she also called for closing immigrant detention facilities and decriminalizing illegal immigration.

She has taken a stronger stance on border issues, citing her time as California attorney general as a time of “prosecuting international criminal organizations.”

Earlier this year, she supported a bipartisan border security bill that included hundreds of millions of dollars in additional wall construction.

President Trump tried to pressure Republicans in Congress to kill the deal, which Ms. Harris said in an interview with CNN was a cynical political move.

Mrs. Harris was also asked about the war in Gaza, reiterating the White House’s position that both Israel and Hamas “need to make a deal” and that Palestinians should have their own state adjacent to Israel.

“This war must end and negotiations must be held to free the hostages,” she said.

She stressed the importance of the deal but gave no specifics on how she would achieve it.

She will not impose an arms embargo on Israel, as some on the left in her own party have demanded.

The Democratic nominee described his moderate immigration views in an interview with CNN, saying he came to believe in building consensus while traveling the country as vice president.

She said she would expand this to include Republicans in the president’s Cabinet.

She said this was fulfilling her promise to be a president “for all Americans.”

“I’ve spent my career inviting diverse opinions. I believe that some of the most important decisions require having people with different views at the table.”

CNN’s Dana Bash asked Harris, who was born to immigrant parents from Jamaica and India, about Trump’s recent comments suggesting she later assumed a black identity for political purposes.

His remarks sparked outrage, but the vice president made no comment.

This time she gave a very short answer.

“Same old, tired playbook. Next question, please.”

When asked later in the interview about the historic nature of her nomination, she said she believed she was the best president for all Americans, regardless of race or gender.

Mr. Waltz was questioned about potentially misleading comments he made about his military service and his personal struggles with having children.

Mrs Bassey asked him to clarify his statement that he had “carried” an assault rifle “in the war”. The campaign clarified that Mr Walz had never been in a war zone.

The governor said he “spoke passionately” and “expressed emotion” on the topic of school shootings, but said his statements were inaccurate.

That “passion” extended to false claims that his wife had undergone in vitro fertilization (IVF) to have a child, which became a political issue in the abortion debate in the United States.

She had intrauterine insemination, not in vitro fertilization.

“I spoke out about my infertility because it’s hell, and my family knows it,” he told CNN.

Mrs. Harris described the moment President Biden called her in July to inform her that he had decided to end his reelection bid.

She said her family was visiting her when she got the call. They were eating pancakes and bacon and doing puzzles.

“Honestly, my first thought was not about me, it was about him,” Ms. Harris said when asked if she had asked for his support.

The vice president also claimed that the president could run for office again.

“He’s incredibly smart, and I’ve spent hours with him in the White House and the Situation Room. He has the intelligence, dedication, judgment and temperament that the American people deserve in a president.”

She said Trump, in contrast, has none of those qualities.