Vice President Kamala Harris was grilled by CBS News’ Bill Whitaker on “60 Minutes” on Monday.
The Democratic nominee was asked about her policies and what direction she would take in the country in, including on her economic plans, whether she was wrong about the current administration’s response to border security, and how she would handle the war in Ukraine, per CNN.
Here are three key takeaways from her interview.
Harris’ economic policies
NPR reported that, regarding the economy, Harris has promised tax breaks for new businesses and first-time homebuyers. According to a report from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, this plan would cost the government an estimated $3.5 trillion.
Whitaker asked the vice president, “How are you going to pay for that?”
“The Democratic candidate’s answer was that the rich must ‘pay their fair share in taxes,’” per Fox News.
Harris was questioned on her border security stance
“Harris was grilled on the issue of immigration and questioned why the current administration didn’t crack down on illegal immigration sooner. This topic has been a recurring attack by the Trump campaign, according to NPR.
According to CNN, the Biden administration has faced a historic record of undocumented immigrants crossing the border. When asked whether this was a mistake, she maintained that it is a “longstanding problem” but refused to answer whether the current administration should have tightened restrictions sooner.
“Was it a mistake to loosen the immigration policies as much as you did?” Whitaker asked.
Rather than answer the question directly, Harris said the Biden administration has offered solutions from the first day they took office.
“‘We need Congress to be able to act to actually fix the problem,’ she said, again echoing Biden,” per Fox News.
Harris says her foreign policy will be the same as the current administration
When asked about the ongoing dilemmas in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, she did not differentiate her foreign policy from that of the current administration, per Fox News.
Harris called for a cease-fire but also said Israel had a right to defend itself after Hamas attacked on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 and taking 250 people captive.
“I maintain Israel has a right to defend itself. We would. And how it does so matters. Far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed. This war has to end,” Harris said, per Fox News.
Harris said when it comes to the crisis between Russia and Ukraine, she would not meet one-on-one with President Vladimir Putin to negotiate solutions to end the war, according to CNN.
She also avoided answering whether she would support the effort to expand NATO to include Ukraine. Harris said she will “deal with it if and when it arrives at that point.”
“As I have made clear on our six previous meetings and throughout Putin’s brutal aggression and war against Ukraine, my support to the people of Ukraine is unwavering. I’ve been proud to stand with Ukraine — I will continue to stand with Ukraine, and I will work to ensure Ukraine prevails in this war, to be safe, secure and prosperous,” Harris said.