The Harris campaign released a new ad touting Vice President Kamala Harris’ work on border enforcement as a California prosecutor — a message that is markedly different from the one she tried to highlight as she prepared to be sworn in as a U.S. senator.
“Kamala Harris has fought violent crime for decades. As a border state prosecutor, she took on drug cartels and jailed gang members who smuggled weapons and drugs across the border,” the ad, titled “Tougher,” says.
The ad also references the Democratic presidential candidate’s time as vice president, claiming that “she supported the toughest border control bill in decades, and as president, she would hire thousands more Border Patrol agents and crack down on fentanyl and human trafficking.”
The bill referenced in the ad was a bipartisan agreement between President Biden and a handful of senators, but was rejected by Republican senators in February, and a subsequent attempt to revive it was also rejected by Republicans in May, despite the president urging lawmakers to “stop playing politics” on border security.
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Vice President Kamala Harris. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
Harris has vowed to reinstate the bill as president.
“Fixing the border is hard, and neither is Kamala Harris,” the ad states.
The ad comes as Harris seeks to go on the offensive on border security, which Republicans have sought to highlight as one of Harris’ weaknesses, especially after record levels of illegal border crossings have been seen under Biden and the vice president has been tasked with addressing the “root causes” of illegal immigration.
But the history of tough border action that Harris’ campaign is trying to highlight appears to be in stark contrast to the messaging she delivered when she was first elected to the Senate in 2016. When then-Senator-elect learned of her nomination to serve on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Harris touted her record of “advocating for immigrants and refugees.”
Vice President Kamala Harris toured a U.S. Border Patrol station in El Paso, Texas on June 25, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
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“I am proud to have had a long career as a prosecutor protecting public safety and defending immigrants and refugees,” Harris said in a Medium post at the time.
“Here in California, I fought to pass laws that protect immigrant victims of crime and prevent unlawful retaliation against undocumented immigrants who report crimes,” she continued, “and during our campaign, I was a leading advocate for increasing, not stopping, the number of asylum seekers our country accepts from Syria and other war-torn countries.”
Meanwhile, Republicans have continued to attack Harris’ record on border security, releasing an ad last month calling her “weak” and “dangerously liberal” on border security.
Former President Trump also leaned into his attack on Harris, appearing on “Truth Social Sunday” on Sunday and highlighting Vice President Harris’ record as the Biden administration’s so-called “border czar.”
Former President Trump held a rally in the historically Democratic South Bronx neighborhood of New York City on May 23, 2024. (Spencer Pratt/Getty Images)
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“Kamala Harris has been appointed sole leader of our border,” Trump said. “The border has quickly become the worst and most dangerous in history. As President, Harris will totally destroy our Country!”
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Get the latest updates on the ongoing border crisis from the Fox News Digital immigration hub.
