Kamala Harris faces 60 Minutes discussions on economic plans and whether Netanyahu is an 'ally' | Kamala Harris

Kamala Harris defended her economic plans, refused to call Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a close ally and said she would not meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin for peace talks unless Ukraine was also represented, during a wide-ranging sit-down interview that was broadcast on Monday.

With the presidential race effectively deadlocked between Harris and Donald Trump, Harris has launched an unusually fierce media onslaught that includes popular podcasts, talk radio, a competitive state town hall, daytime television, late-night shows and the sit-down Monday's broadcast includes CBS' primetime 60 Minutes election special.

Before Harris' interview aired, CBS correspondent Scott Pelley explained his attempts to secure a similar 60 Minutes meeting with Trump.

“Unfortunately, Trump canceled last week,” Pelley told the audience. He said the Trump campaign offered “varying explanations” for why the Republican nominee declined to participate, including that he didn't want fact-checking.

Instead, the station aired an interview with Maricopa County Republican Stephen Richer, a Republican who Pelley said “paid the price for Trump’s claims of a stolen election in 2020.” The election official lost his primary in July to an opponent who called Maricopa County's election a “laughing stock.”

In the interview with CBS's Bill Whitaker, Harris was pressed about how she would pay for her economic proposals, which include plans to build millions of new housing units, tax breaks for new parents and $25,000 down payment assistance for new home buyers. The vice president promised to raise taxes on the country's billionaires and largest corporations, a solution Whitaker said was dubious.

“We're dealing with the real world here,” he said, asking how she would convince Congress to raise taxes on the country's top earners. Harris insisted that there would be lawmakers who would listen to her proposal if she were president.

An analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a bipartisan group that seeks lower deficits, released a report Monday that found Harris' economic proposals will increase the federal debt by as much as $8.1 trillion by 2035 or could have no effect at all. Trump's plans, on the other hand, could increase the national debt by up to $15.15 trillion over the same period.

“I can’t afford to be short-sighted when it comes to strengthening the American economy,” Harris said in the interview. “Let me tell you something. I am a religious official. They know I’m a capitalist too, and I know the limits of government.”

Harris skirted around the thorny question of whether Netanyahu was “a really close ally,” saying, “The better question is: Do we have an important alliance between the American people and the Israeli people?” And the answer to that question is ” Yes.”

The excerpt was published on Sunday, ahead of the first anniversary of Hamas' deadly cross-border attack on Israel. In a sign that Harris is moving toward Biden's approach to foreign policy, the vice president said Israel has the right to defend itself, adding that “far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed.” Israel's war has leveled Gaza and killed nearly 42,000 Palestinians.

In an exchange on Ukraine's future, Harris categorically ruled out a bilateral meeting with Putin to discuss ending the war without involving the country's President Volodymyr Zelensky: “Without Ukraine? No,” Harris said.

She also warned again about what could happen if Trump were in office: “Donald Trump, if he were president, Putin would be in Kiev right now.” He says, “Oh, he can end it on day one.” You know , what that is. It’s about surrender.”

During the interview, which was recorded and aired in full on Monday, Harris defended her ideological shift toward the political center and emphasized, as she has in the past, that her “values ​​have not changed.”

She said traveling the country as vice president and working to pass bipartisan legislation in Congress emphasized the need to find “common ground.”

“I believe in consensus building,” she said.

Harris was also asked about the gun she discussed owning during an event with Oprah Winfrey last month, where she declared, “If someone breaks into my house, they're going to get shot,” causing the host and audience to laugh. On 60 Minutes, Harris said she owned a Glock. When asked if she had ever fired, she laughed: “Of course I have,” she said. “At a shooting range. Yes.”

Part of the interview included her vice president, Tim Walz, who was asked where he and Harris disagreed.

With a shy smile, Walz said Harris probably wished he was “a little more careful” with his public comments. Since being named the vice presidential candidate, Walz has had to clarify several previous comments, including his description of his military service and questioning whether he was in Hong Kong “when Tiananmen took place,” a reference to the pro-democracy protests that culminated in the massacre of Hundreds of people in June 1989.

Walz dismissed that remark during last week's vice presidential debate, saying he was a “knucklehead.” But Whitaker pressed him, asking whether it was a misrepresentation and whether the American people could trust him.

Walz drew a sharp line between himself and Trump, whom he called a “pathological liar,” and said voters should feel comfortable trusting him.

“I admit to being a jerk sometimes, but the people closest to me know that I keep my word,” he said.

The 60 Minutes interview was part of a weeklong Democratic media offensive that began with Harris' appearance on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, which aired Sunday. She is also scheduled to attend a Univision town hall in Nevada on Thursday, do an interview with Howard Stern on Sirius XM and appear on The View and Late Night with Stephen Colbert. From Los Angeles, Walz also appeared in media, including on the SmartLess podcast and Jimmy Kimmel Live.

All in all, this represents a drastic change for the vice president after two and a half months of largely resisting such exchanges.

Before boarding Air Force Two en route to New York on Monday afternoon, Harris answered a handful of questions from reporters.

Asked about a report that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ignored the vice president's request to talk about recovery efforts as the state prepares for Hurricane Milton's landfall, Harris accused the Republican of “playing political games.” play”.

“These are emergencies at their peak, this is completely irresponsible and selfish,” she said.

She also criticized Trump as “incredibly irresponsible” for spreading falsehoods about the government's response to Hurricane Helene, which ripped through the southern Appalachians and killed more than 220 people in six states.

“The former president is spreading a lot of misinformation and disinformation about what is available, particularly for Helene survivors,” she said. “It is extremely irresponsible. It's about him. It’s not about you.”