Vice President Kamala Harris sat down with radio host and author Charlamagne Tha God on Tuesday for an hour-long audio town hall three weeks before the election.
The wide-ranging interview was part of Harris’ effort to cement her support among Black voters, and the conversation covered everything from decriminalizing marijuana to Harris’ plan to make first-time home-buying more affordable.
Here are five takeaways from the interview.
Harris’ record as prosecutor
In an initial tee-up, Harris was asked about a persistent criticism that during her tenure as a prosecutor in California, she helped incarcerate a disproportionate number of Black men.
Harris countered that she was “one of the most progressive prosecutors” when it came to marijuana cases and that her Senate and vice presidential records reflect her support for reclassifying the drug.
She also emphasized her efforts to curb police brutality, including her support for the George Floyd Policing Act, which is stalled in Congress.
Harris pressed her case amid concerns that her support among Black voters is lower than Joe Biden‘s was at this point in the 2020 election cycle. About 90 percent of Black voters supported Biden in 2020, but according to a recent New York Times/Siena College poll, just 78 percent of Black voters say they will vote for Harris in November. Among Black men, that number falls to 70 percent.
The Democratic Party seems keenly aware of Harris’ faltering support; former President Barack Obama spoke directly to the issue in the battleground state of Pennsylvania last week, saying it’s “not acceptable” for Black men to sit out the election.
Vice President Kamala Harris seen speaking during a campaign rally on October 13, 2024, in Greenville, North Carolina. Meanwhile, Harris spoke with Charlamagne Tha God on Tuesday. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Harris says Trump is a threat to democracy
On multiple occasions, Harris drilled down on a case she has repeatedly made on the campaign trail: that a second Donald Trump presidency would be disastrous for democracy.
She repeated a claim that Trump said, “he’s going to terminate the Constitution of the United States.” She was referring to Trump’s baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election and his failed efforts to nullify Biden’s victory.
Harris also zeroed in on Project 2025, a 900-page proposal written by conservative activists that would serve as the blueprint for a second Trump administration.
Trump has repeatedly said he’s not familiar with Project 2025 or its proposals, despite the fact that many of its authors worked for his administration, and his own campaign platform shares several similarities with the initiative.
Harris also agreed with Charlamagne Tha God when he said Trump and his supporters are “about fascism.”
“Yes, we can say that” she said.
The Democratic nominee also went on to criticize Trump’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including reports that Trump sent Putin COVID-19 tests at the height of the pandemic.
“Black people were dying every day, by the hundreds, during that time,” Harris said.
Harris on race and the Black community
Harris deftly addressed Trump’s previous attempts to call into question her race without belaboring the point. She mentioned both the Black church she grew up attending and the church where she is currently a member. She also touted her bona fides as a graduate of a historically Black college and university.
“I am proud to be the first HBCU candidate of the United States,” said Harris, who attended Howard University in Washington D.C. “I intend on being the first HBCU president of the United States.”
She also criticized the Trump campaign’s decision to sell Bibles and sneakers and described the move as pandering to the Black community.
“He’s selling $60 Bibles or tennis shoes and trying to play people, as though that makes him more understanding of the Black community,” the vice president said. “Come on.”
Harris shrugs off critics who say she’s “scripted”
Charlamagne Tha God grilled Harris about her authenticity, telling her that “folks say you come off as very scripted.”
“That would be called discipline,” she responded. Harris acknowledged that while her stump speeches are repetitive, she believes the stakes are high enough for her to drill down on her platform on the campaign trail.
“The reality is that there are certain things that must be repeated to have everyone know what I stand for,” she said.
Harris on Janet and Michael Jackson
Harris also responded to a viral rumor that, as Charlamagne put it “Janet Jackson is mad at you because you prosecuted her brother, the late, great, Michael Jackson.”
“This is not true, on either count,” Harris said.
She added that she hasn’t spoken to Janet Jackson.
The rumors popped up after Jackson falsely claimed last month that Harris’ father is white. Harris is biracial — her mother was Indian, and her father is Black.
