Democratic Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris Unveils Her Policy Platform

Vice President Kamala Harris (left) chats with Judy Aiken backstage during a recent Biden administration event. Photo courtesy White House via Flickr

The vice president billed her vision as "A New Way Forward," with several nods to manufacturing policy.

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris officially released her policy platform on Monday, outlining her agenda for the country should she win the White House - and several issues tied to manufacturing made the cut.

Now, this is a good time to remind you, dear reader, that the Alliance for American Manufacturing is a nonpartisan organization. We don't endorse candidates at any level of office, be it the presidency or for a local city council position.

But we do take a look at what candidates for office have to say about our issues. Ahead of the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee, we examined what policies were included in the GOP's official party platform, and we did the same ahead of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago.

The problem was that the DNC version was written and approved by the party before President Biden opted out of the 2024 presidential race, which means it was written with his vision in mind. It literally had his name all over it! While we surmised at the time that Harris probably agreed with much of what was included in that document - she is Biden's vice president, after all - it was worth keeping in mind that it wasn't her policy agenda, either. Surely she'd have some of her own priorities to highlight!

On Monday, we got our answer when Harris offered up her own policy platform on her campaign website.

Titled A New Way Forward, it contrasts the Project 2025 agenda put forth by the Heritage Foundation and also includes a few new ideas that were not a part of that old DNC platform. As far as manufacturing issues go, there were a handful of highlights:

Support for Industrial Policy

Some of Harris's biggest policy plans for manufacturing are explained in a section titled "Support American Innovation and Workers." The section name-checks Biden administration policies like the Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and Science Act, and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, noting these laws have supported more than 60,000 infrastructure projects, helped create 1.6 million manufacturing and construction jobs, and led to $900 billion in private sector investments.

If elected president, Harris "will build on this Administration's progress to ensure American industries and workers thrive," her website states.

"Vice President Harris will continue to support American leadership in semiconductors, clean energy, AI, and other cutting edge industries of the future," the section continues. "She'll also fight for unions, because as Vice President of the most pro-labor administration in history, she knows that unions are the backbone of the middle class."

Standing Up to China

Harris's policy platform positions her as having a willingness to get tough with China's government, including on economic issues. For example, in the "Support American Innovation and Workers" section, the campaign notes that "Vice President Harris will not tolerate unfair trade practices from China or any competitor that undermines American workers." Another foreign policy focused section notes that Harris "has met with China's Xi Jinping, making clear she will always stand up for American interests in the face of China's threats, and traveled to the Indo-Pacific four times to advance our economic and security partnerships."

"Vice President Harris will make sure that America, not China, wins the competition for the 21st century and that we strengthen, not abdicate, our global leadership," the campaign states. "She will invest in the competitive advantages that make America the strongest nation on Earth-American workers, innovation, and industry-and will work to ensure America remains a leader in the industries of the future, from semiconductors to clean energy to artificial intelligence. She has stood up to China's unfair economic practices to protect American workers, businesses, and families."

While Harris presents a tough stance on China, the policy platform doesn't go into specific ways Harris will enforce our trade laws, such as via the use of tariffs, which is something both President Biden and former President Trump deployed. Trump has promised a 60% tariff on Chinese imports should he retake the White House.

Other Manufacturing Mentions

There are a couple of additional manufacturing lines in the document. In a section about small business, the campaign notes that "Vice President Harris and Governor Walz know that small businesses-neighborhood shops, high-tech startups, small manufacturers, and more-are the engines of our economy." And in an education-themed section, the campaign writes that Harris "has implemented policies that have led to over one million registered apprentices being hired, and she will do even more to scale up programs that create good career pathways for non-college graduates."

We may hear more about what plans Harris and Trump both have for manufacturing this week, as the two are set to faceoff on Tuesday night in Philadelphia in what may end up being their only debate ahead of the election. We'll stay tuned.

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