CNN reported that Vice President Kamala Harris did not give a straight answer when asked about her sudden change of stance on the issue of fracking, despite having said until recently that she had always supported a ban on fracking.
In her first interview since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris said she does not support fracking, a point she made clear during a debate with former Vice President Mike Pence in 2020.
“No. I said in the 2020 debates that I would not ban fracking. I did not ban fracking as vice president. I will not ban fracking as president,” Harris told moderator Dana Bash.
“You said, I think in 2019, at a town hall meeting, 'Will you commit to implementing a federal fracking ban on your first day in office?' and you said, 'There's no question I support the fracking ban, so I am in favor.' So did that campaign change things?” Bash continued.
Harris said that while she has changed her stance on many policy issues since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee, her “values” have not changed.
“In 2020 I made my position clear. It's now 2024 and I haven't changed my position and I won't change it. I kept my promise and I will keep it,” Harris said.
CNN fact checker Daniel Dale explained that Harris repeatedly noted during the 2020 debates that she didn't clarify whether she supported a ban on fracking. Rather, she simply said that Joe Biden doesn't support a ban on fracking.
“Joe Biden will not end fracking. He has been very clear on that. … Again, as the American people know, Joe Biden will not ban fracking,” Harris said at the time.
“So it makes perfect sense that she was speaking on behalf of Biden at the time – the president, not the vice president, sets policy for the administration, but perhaps others have different views. I have certainly not heard Kamala Harris say that she personally abandoned the views she expressed in 2019. Rather, she was speaking on behalf of Joe Biden,” Dale said.
In the interview with Bash published on Thursday, joined by her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris said that while her stance on many policy issues has changed since she became the Democratic presidential nominee, her “values” have not.
“Dana, I think the most important and significant thing about my policy views and decisions is that my values have not changed. You mentioned the Green New Deal. I have always believed and committed to the climate crisis being real and being an urgent issue that requires applying standards like deadlines,” Harris said.
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