Vice President Harris finds herself caught in the middle when it comes to criminal justice.
More than 160 criminal justice advocacy groups sent an open letter to Harris urging her not to call former President Trump a “criminal” or a “felon” and pressuring her to embrace the groups’ progressive policies.
The former San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general has repeatedly portrayed herself as an aggressive prosecutor who knows Trump’s “type,” a reference to Trump’s recent felony conviction in New York City.
“Some may simplify the contest between you and former President Trump as one between ‘tough on crime’ prosecutors and ‘criminals,'” the letter said. “We hope you will resist this language and framing, which is harmful to us and to your campaign.”
How long will Kamala Harris’ polling honeymoon against Donald Trump last?
Vice President Harris and former President Trump (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images | Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
The group praised Harris for her support of criminal justice reform and warned her against using language that unfairly derogates and stigmatizes those who have been convicted of crimes.
“First, we believe you have been and will continue to be a leader on criminal justice reform,” they wrote, “and that words like ‘criminal’ and ‘felon’ are broad terms that taint the criminal records of more than 70 million Americans, including one in three Black men convicted of a felony.”
“She is the embodiment of contradiction. She lives with the winds of politics blowing, so whatever the wind is blowing, she’s going to follow it. That’s the direction that serves her career.”
The letter, signed by more than 160 leaders of groups ranging from the Bail Project to Beauty After Bars, slammed Trump but urged Harris to focus on her past record rather than her new status as a felon.
“Donald Trump must be held accountable for his actions and failure to demonstrate remorse,” the letter states. “He must explain the impact of his actions and policy proposals, but he must resist outdated fear-mongering that reinforces the criminalization that keeps so many of us out of voting, housing, jobs, and freedom.”
Current state of the election campaign with 100 days left until the November election
Vice President Harris (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The letter highlights Harris’ challenge in reconciling her tough-on-crime image with her insistence that “everyone needs to wake up.”
Colin Rankin, vice chair of the California Republican Party, told Fox News Digital that Harris’ criminal record shows inconsistency and political expediency over principle.
“She’s the epitome of contradiction,” Rankin said. “She moves with the political winds, so whatever the winds are blowing, she goes with it. That serves her career well. She doesn’t seem like a person with true values. I see her as a chameleon. Whatever wave is going to lead her to success, she’s going with it.”
Rankin said Harris began her career as San Francisco’s district attorney by putting thousands of minorities behind bars for minor marijuana-related offenses that required defendants to set bail at $5,000.
“Black, brown and Polynesian people have been disproportionately affected,” Rankin said.
A scathing report reveals the Biden-Harris administration has released dozens of migrants on terrorism watch lists into the US
But the former Biden right-hand woman has transformed into a criminal justice reform activist after becoming California’s attorney general, Rankin said.
Her office supported Proposition 47, a controversial bill that would reduce many felony charges to misdemeanors.
The 2014 law, dubbed the “Safe Communities and Schools Act” by Harris’ office, has been blamed for ushering in a period of lawlessness and chaos that still continues in California.
“I remember us being against it, and at the time it was like shouting into the wind,” Rankin said, “but imagine how ridiculous it sounded for us to be urging people to vote no for the sake of safe neighborhoods and safe schools. It seemed insane to us, and deliberate. Decriminalizing felonies makes no neighborhood or any school safe.”
A scathing report reveals the Biden-Harris administration has released dozens of migrants on terrorism watch lists into the US
Colin Rankin, vice chair of the California Republican Party, called Kamala Harris a “walking contradiction.” (Courtesy of Colin Rankin)
Rankin said Harris now faces a dilemma about which of her contradictory personalities to embrace, and that she won’t be able to “laugh it off.”
“You can’t trust her,” Rankin added. “I think the only promise she can make is to herself.”
Click here to get the FOX News app
A spokesman for Harris did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
