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Harris promises business leaders ‘pragmatic’ economic policies

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Harris promises business leaders ‘pragmatic’ economic policies

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WASHINGTON — After promising to crack down on companies that exploit consumers if elected president, Kamala Harris set out on Wednesday to prove that she is a capitalist whose policies would be a boon to companies that play by the rules.

Harris told business leaders in Pittsburgh that she believes most companies are trying to do the right thing for their employees and customers. The Democratic candidate, who has spent her entire career in government and wants to raise taxes on corporations, said she would actively pursue relationships between her administration and the business community.

“I have always been a strong supporter of workers and unions and always will be,” Harris said to applause. “I also believe that we need to include those who create the most jobs in America. Look, I’m a capitalist. I believe in free and fair markets. I believe in consistent and transparent rules of the game to create a stable business environment.”

Harris’ first major economic proposal before the 2024 election was a promise to hire government lawyers to help companies suspected of overcharging for food and groceries, and to direct them to investigate potential mergers between major food companies.

She has also proposed lowering the cost of housing by banning Wall Street investors from buying homes in bulk, a practice that Democrats say sucks up inventory and drives up costs for American families. Harris says she would cap insulin at $35 a month and cap co-pays for prescription drugs at $2,000 a year.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has accused Harris of being a “Marxist” — she says she’s a capitalist — and nicknamed her “Comrade Kamala” because of her campaign plans, which include a proposed federal ban on food and grocery price gouging as a way to ease inflation. It’s one of the few proposals Harris has made that isn’t a continuation or expansion of Biden administration priorities.

Harris has also proposed tax breaks to encourage builders to build homes targeted at first-time homebuyers, and she said she would expand the business owner’s deduction from $5,000 to as much as $50,000 to encourage small business creation.

The Democratic candidate says she will pay for her proposals by raising the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%, a rate cut that Republicans in Congress pushed through when Trump was in office. Trump has said that if re-elected, he will cut the rate to 15% for companies that make their products in the U.S.

“With the vision I outline today, we will not only prevent our companies from moving abroad, but under my leadership we will also take jobs from other countries,” Trump said Tuesday in a speech on the economy in Georgia.

Harris explains economic ‘philosophy’ in Pittsburgh

In her speech on Wednesday, Harris said she would encourage partnerships between government and private companies to expand the middle class.

Harris based her middle-class upbringing on her practical approach to economic policy, taking into account the needs of businesses and families trying to stay afloat.

“As president, I will be grounded in my fundamental values ​​of fairness, dignity and opportunity. And I promise you that I will be pragmatic in my approach,” Harris said at the Economic Club of Pittsburgh.

Borrowing a phrase from former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Harris said she would pursue “bold, persistent experiments” that are not “constrained by ideology” and that she would seek “practical solutions” to problems, applying statistics and facts and staying focused on crises and long-term goals for the country.

Among the proposals Harris touted: a $6,000 child tax credit for families with newborns and a $25,000 down payment assistance for first-time home buyers.

“I don’t want you to have to worry about paying your monthly rent if your car breaks down, I want you to be able to save for your child’s education, I want you to be able to take a nice vacation every now and then. I want you to be able to buy Christmas presents for your loved ones and not worry when you look at your bank statement,” Harris said. “I want you to be able to build some equity.”

Harris said she would cut taxes for middle class Americans and give every American paid leave, which can be used to care for children and elderly parents.

She cited her late mother, a cancer researcher at a government-funded lab whom she said she cared for when she was diagnosed with the disease, and contrasted her vision for a “strong middle class” with Trump’s agenda.

“He has no intention of growing our middle class. He’s only interested in improving life for himself and people like himself — the wealthiest Americans. You can see it in his economic agenda,” Harris said in Pittsburgh.

Heartburn over Harris and Trump’s economic policies

Harris and Trump did not go into much detail about how their plans would reduce costs.

Trump has said he will bypass Congress to impose tariffs of 20% or more on foreign imports. Harris and some economists have likened the Republican proposal to a sales tax that could hurt both consumers and American businesses.

To implement most of her proposals, Harris would have to work with the legislature. For example, a prohibition on predatory pricing and the tax deductions for businesses and consumers she proposes would require approval from Congress.

Economic agendas in focus

Harris’ choice to make her economic case to business leaders in Pittsburgh is a sign of how her campaign is viewing the race six weeks before the election. It’s a major industrial city that she has visited repeatedly in the roughly two months since becoming the Democratic nominee, including as she prepared for her only debate against Trump.

Trump had a nearly six-point lead over Harris on the economy in a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll released earlier this month. The national survey gave Harris a four-point lead in the race as a whole. A separate poll in Pennsylvania had Harris narrowly ahead of Trump in Pennsylvania. The result was within the margin of error.

Her campaign this week touted a letter from more than 400 economists endorsing her over Trump, saying Trump’s policies could fuel inflation, hurt GDP growth and increase unemployment.

Contributors: Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy

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