Is Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris telling voters what she actually believes?
Or just telling them what they want to hear?
According to progressive Senator Bernie Sanders, he says its the later. Obvious to most… but still a bombshell admission with just weeks left in the critical 2024 presidential election.
During an interview yesterday with Jake Tapper on CNN’s “State of the Union”, Sanders emphatically said that Harris is flip-flopping on major issues because she is willing to do anything to beat former President Donald Trump — not because she believes her new alleged stances.
During his interview, Tapper pressed Sanders on major issues that Harris held a leftist position on not so long ago, but has suddenly pivoted to the center in an effort to align with a wider swath of voters.
“In addition to the Green New Deal and Medicare-for-all single-payer for health care, and ending fracking, in addition to those being positions that you hold, Vice President Harris used to be with you on all three of them and now is against you on all three of them,” Tapper said.
“Is she making a mistake having reversed those positions?” he asked.
Sanders responded: “I think what we’re seeing is a coalition of people, more establishment Democrats and progressive Democrats and progressive independents — I’m the longest serving independent in American history — come together with the goal of defeating a very dangerous candidate. And that is Donald Trump.”
In other words, Sanders is fully admitting that Harris’ campaign is a total smoke screen in an effort to garner votes from potential undecided voters.
However, Sanders’ observation shouldn’t come as a total surprise.
In early September, Sanders echoed similar sentiments to “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker.
“She has previously supported Medicare-For-All, now she does not. She’s previously supported a ban on fracking, now she does not. These, senator, are ideas that you have campaigned on. Do you think she is abandoning her progressive ideals?” probed Welker.
“No, I don’t think she’s abandoning her ideals,” Sanders replied. “I think she’s trying to be pragmatic and doing what she thinks is right in order to win the election.”
Sanders continued his critique of Harris saying his views were “slightly different” than Harris’, but he still considers her a “progressive” with similar goals.
“She has another approach toward moving to universal health care,” Sanders said about Harris no longer supporting Medicare-For-All.
“But again, I think on issues like expanding Medicare, like expanding Social Security and lifting the cap on taxable income that the rich put so we can raise Social Security benefits… the need to raise the minimum wage from a starvation, $7.25 minimum wage to a living wage… I think if you campaign on those issues, raising questions on billionaires, you know what? She’s going to win, and I think she can win big,” he continued.
Since emerging as the Democratic nominee, Harris has distanced herself from many far-left policies on immigration, energy and health care that she previously embraced.
But according to a Harris campaign the move was made to take a “pragmatic” approach to “bring all sides together.”
“While Donald Trump is wedded to the extreme ideas in his Project 2025 agenda, Vice President Harris believes real leadership means bringing all sides together to build consensus,” spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg said in a statement. “It is that approach that made it possible for the Biden-Harris administration to achieve bipartisan breakthroughs on everything from infrastructure to gun violence prevention. As President, she will take that same pragmatic approach, focusing on common-sense solutions for the sake of progress.”
Check out Sanders’ entire interview:
TAPPER: Kamala supported the Green New Deal, Medicare For All, and a ban on fracking. Is she making a mistake reversing those positions?
BERNIE: She's trying to beat Donald Trump.
There you have it. Kamala hasn't "changed" — she's just trying to get elected. pic.twitter.com/BfLonG9ga3
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 20, 2024