Senator Bernie Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, has deflected criticism that Vice President Kamala Harris has leaned too far to the left in the past, calling her change in policy stance “pragmatic.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) argued that Harris had recalibrated and was “doing what she believes is right to win the election.”
“No, I don't think she's abandoning ideals. I think she's just trying to be realistic,” Sanders said Sunday on NBC's “Meet the Press.”
“My own view is a little bit different. I think there are a lot of people in America today, rural people, working class people, who are so controlled by big money interests that they no longer believe that the U.S. Congress and government represent their interests.”
Harris similarly defended her past shifting stance, saying her “values haven't changed” in her first major interview with CNN since winning the nomination last month.
Harris has changed course on many policy issues, including: Ban on plastic strawsA fracking ban is seen as necessary to win in Pennsylvania, and she has also softened her push for Medicare for All, a program that would mandate gun buybacks. Reportedly Withdrawal of the proposal, decriminalization of illegal border crossings, Federal Job Guarantee.
In 2019, Ms Harris was ranked by GovTrack as the most liberal member of the US Senate, further to the left than Mr Sanders, who is usually considered the kingmaker, but the organisation later retracted the ranking.
When the vice president announced his capital gains tax policy last week, he appeared to lean toward the middle, while noting the potential hit that a big tax hike would have on entrepreneurs.
She called for a 28% top tax rate on long-term capital gains for individuals making more than $1 million a year. Currently, the top capital gains tax rate is 20%.
That's significantly lower than President Biden's fiscal 2025 budget, which Harris supported. Biden's plan calls for raising it to 44.6% at its top level. According to some analysis of the plan it is Assuming Biden will promote The top tax rate is 39.6%, plus a 5% investment income tax. It's unclear what Harris will do about that 5% tax.
“I would impose higher taxes,” Sanders stated bluntly, complaining that “we have three people at the top of our class who are richer than the bottom half of America,” and declaring that “we could substantially raise taxes on billionaires and people at the very top.”
Sanders asserted that he still considers Harris a progressive.
“Yeah, she's not in the same boat as me,” he explained, pointing to her support for expanding the child tax credit and listing several other examples.
“She's talking about building 3 million affordable housing units, which is a big deal when we have a massive housing crisis in America. She's talking about passing the Pearl Bill to make it easier for workers to unionize, which is a big deal,” he said. “I consider her a progressive.”
The Vermont independent senator noted his policy differences with Harris but stressed that he believes she can move significantly in the direction he wants, citing health care as an example.
“I personally think there's something wrong with us being the only large country on earth that doesn't guarantee health care to every citizen,” he said, “which is why I support Medicare for All. She doesn't.”
“She's taking a different approach to universal health care.”
