In her first–and only–interview since becoming the presumptive Democratic nominee after incumbent President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to CNN’s Dana Bash alongside Harris’ vice-presidential running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz last week.
During the interview, Bash pushed Harris to explain her flip-flop on fracking, a method of natural gas extraction that has become popular in western Pennsylvania over the last decade or so. Bash asked Harris for “some clarity on where [Harris] stands on some key policy issue”, reciting a quote from 2019 in which Harris said, “There is no question I’m in favor of banning fracking.”
When asked if she is still in favor of banning fracking, Harris said no but declined to admit there was a change of heart, saying she “made that clear on the debate stage in 2020” that fracking would not be banned and as president, she would not ban fracking.
She was pressed further on why her position changed, and Harris told Bash her “values have not changed” and touted the Inflation Reduction Act in “creating over 300,000 new clean energy jobs.”
In fact checking the interview, CNN’s Daniel Dale confirmed that Harris did not clarify her 2019 statement to ban fracking in any debate or campaign speech as the vice-presidential nominee in 2020.
I know politicians lie, but Kamala Harris side by side on banning fracking, when she ran for president in 2020 & now, is honestly staggering. It’s not just that she said she would ban fracking, it’s that she cited her baby nieces as the reason. pic.twitter.com/8WklYz9Z3h
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) August 30, 2024
Harris’ flip-flop on fracking has garnered criticism. Daniel Turner of the energy workers group Power the Future said Harris will “abandon any position she pretends to have now”, arguing her willingness to quickly jettison her previous positions shows “she doesn’t care about the truth of her energy positions.”
Fox Business personality Stuart Varney additionally blasted Vice President Harris, saying her change of heart “rings hollow” and that it doesn’t matter what Harris’ stated position is when climate change advocates use the courts to halt domestic energy development.
California Congressman Adam Schiff, also a Democratic candidate for Senate, disagreed with Harris, saying he favors banning fracking. Meanwhile, Pennsylvania GOP Senate candidate Dave McCormick attacked Harris’ change of heart on Fox News, telling the cable network that on top of banning fracking, energy-related red tape is hampering Pennsylvania’s “economic renewal.”
Even before the CNN interview, Harris’ previous comments on fracking have been a common theme of the Trump campaign in Pennsylvania. In campaign events in the state, Trump reminded the crowd of Harris’ 2019 pledge to ban fracking, and denounced Harris’ support for Green New Deal legislation as senator and vice president.
