CNN
By Eric Bradner, CNN
(CNN) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday criticized Donald Trump’s calls for broad tariff hikes, saying the former president is “just not very serious about how he thinks” about the matter.
“You don’t just throw around the idea of just tariffs across the board. And that’s part of the problem with Donald Trump,” Harris told MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle in a brief clip previewing an interview set to air later Wednesday.
In clips of the same interview, however, Harris declined to answer how she would achieve some of her own economic plans.
Harris has faced criticism for rarely sitting for interviews and holding news conferences. Her campaign has slowly ramped up the frequency of her unscripted — but often friendly — appearances, often targeting minority voters and swing-state audiences.
On Wednesday, she attacked Trump for not having a plan on tariffs that goes beyond a “talking point.” Trump has said he would slap steep tariffs on companies that don’t manufacture their goods in the United States, raising hundreds of billions of dollars that the former president says would be used to help the American people.
He has floated a 200% tariff on auto imports from Mexico, as well as another tariff upward of 60% on all Chinese imports.
However, Trump has denied what economists say is the reality of such tariff hikes: Companies would pass those costs on to consumers through higher prices.
“He’s just not very serious about how he thinks about some of these issues,” Harris said. “And one must be serious and have a plan — and a real plan that’s not just about some talking point ending in an exclamation at a political rally, but actually putting the thought into what will be the return on the investment; what will be the economic impact on everyday people.”
Harris also said the United States is “going to have to raise corporate taxes” to pay for her economic proposals, such as an expanded child tax credit, downpayment assistance for first-time homebuyers and more.
But she did not say how she would raise those taxes if Republicans control the Senate after November’s election.
“It’s about paying their fair share,” she said of corporations and wealthy Americans. “I am not mad at anyone for achieving success, but everyone should pay their fair share.”
The interview came after Harris had delivered an economic-focused speech in Pittsburgh during which she pledged to expand the nation’s manufacturing industry.
“We will prioritize investments for strengthening factory towns, retooling existing factories, hiring locally and working with unions because no one that grows up in America’s greatest industrial or agricultural centers should be abandoned,” Harris said in her speech at the Economic Club of Pittsburgh.
Harris told MSNBC that Trump left office with “the worst economy since the Great Depression,” pointing to declines in manufacturing jobs under the former president whose last year in office also saw the economy dented by the coronavirus pandemic.
She said Trump’s agenda would benefit wealthy Americans and large corporations, rather than the middle class.
“Donald Trump has a history of taking care of very rich people,” Harris said. “My perspective on the economy is when you grow the middle class, America’s economy is stronger.”
Last week, Harris answered questions from Oprah Winfrey, the television mogul who endorsed Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention. She was also interviewed by Stephanie “Chiquibaby” Himonidis, a popular Spanish-language radio host and podcaster, last week, and this week taped an interview with the “All the Smoke” podcast hosted by retired NBA players Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes.
Harris took questions from the National Association of Black Journalists last week, and she has granted interviews to local news outlets in key swing states like Pennsylvania.
This story has been updated with additional information.
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