Vice President Kamala Harris and her opponent former President Donald Trump are neck and neck with just weeks to go until election day. Voters have expressed that the economy, immigration, and democracy are the issues that they are worried about most in this election. In the final stretch of the race, both campaigns have sought to discount the policies of the other. What exactly are these policies and how will each candidate work to deliver their agenda to the American people?
The Economy
Harris
In an 82-page policy book, the Harris campaign has outlined their plans for what they call an ‘Opportunity Economy.’ In this plan, Harris promises tax cuts, incentives to buy and build more houses, and to cut costs for the middle class. Harris’s proposed tax cuts would expand the child tax credit to $3,600 and would increase the child tax credit up to $6,000. To make housing more affordable, Harris would give $25,000 to first-time home buyers and would expand upon the LIHTC, a tax incentive for housing developers to build three million new homes. To cut costs for American workers, Harris has vowed to build upon and make benefits under the Affordable Care Act permanent, to invest in diverse supply chains for food production, and to fight anti-competitive, monopolistic actions through prosecution and a ban on price gouging. Harris has proposed raising the corporate tax rate to 28 percent and would increase taxes on the ultra-wealthy, generating five trillion dollars.
Trump
To spur economic growth, former President Trump has called for tax cuts, sprawling tariffs, and using federal lands to build new homes. On taxes, Trump wishes to permanently codify his landmark ‘Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.’ This act cut taxes for vast swathes of Americans but has been criticized for cutting taxes on the ultra-wealthy. Trump has vowed to universally raise tariffs to 20% and to raise tariffs on Chinese imports to 60%. This would undoubtedly raise funds for the federal government, but it could spark retaliatory tariffs from our trade partners, imperiling American trade. The cost of tariffs to the producer are almost always passed onto the consumer as well, meaning Americans would be paying thousands of dollars more for goods because of these expansive tariffs. Trump has said in rallies and in interviews that he would buoy new housing projects by providing federal lands to developers, however, the Trump campaign hasn’t laid out specifics on this matter.
The Analysis
America’s largest financial firm, JPMorgan Chase, finds that the US economy would see the most growth under a Harris presidency. The Wall Street Journal projects that the national deficit would go up under the Presidency of both candidates, but it would soar even further under Trump than it would under Harris. The costs of tariffs are typically passed onto the consumer, economists project that Trump’s proposed tariffs would increase costs by $4,000. Federal taxes would decrease by $6.5 trillion under Trump and would decrease by $4.2 trillion under Harris. Under Trump the federal deficit would rise by $7.5 trillion and under Harris it would rise by $3.5 trillion over ten years according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
Immigration
Harris
In the first three years of the Biden-Harris administration immigration soared, with border crossings quadrupling. The administration was very slow to act on this matter, taking three years to put in place serious measures to slow immigration. Harris has endorsed ‘The Border Act of 2024,’ the bill that was written by both Democrats and Republicans which Trump famously shot down, wishing to campaign on the issue. Harris would take a much less lax position on immigration than President Biden has, but her border policies can be defined almost only by this bill. However, if passed, it would bring solutions to many unsolved immigration issues. The National Border Patrol Council, the largest union of border patrol agents endorsed the bill. Despite being named as the Biden administration’s ‘Border Czar,’ Harris has only visited the Southern Border once during her Vice Presidency. Immigration is an issue that Democrats are trailing Republicans on, making Arizona, a state that went for Biden but one that isn’t needed for a Democratic victory, almost certain to go red.
Trump
Trump plans to revive the policies that he enacted in his first term and to execute the largest expulsion of migrants in American history. Trump took a much different, more aggressive approach to immigration than his successor. Border crossings were down significantly under Trump when compared to the current administration, but the ways in which Trump wishes to solve the issue have set off alarms. In the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic then President Trump used Title 42, a law that gives the President the ability to expel someone who had recently been in a country where quarantinable diseases are present, to seal the southern border. Under a second Trump term, the law would be extended to halt immigration on account of the fact that many of these migrants come from countries where tuberculosis is present (though not rampant). Trump would follow in the footsteps of the Eisenhower administration in expelling millions of immigrants, focusing first on towns like Aurora, Colorado, and Springfield, Ohio, which he has used to sensationalize the issue and capitalize on debunked conspiracy theories. According to the New York Times, Trump would use a series of methods to go about these millions of expulsions by putting immigrants into camps and expediting their removal from the country by curbing due process statutes.
Foreign Affairs
Harris
The three most pressing foreign affairs issues concern Ukraine, Israel, and China. On Ukraine, Harris has followed in the path of Biden, backing aid to Ukraine and she’s reemphasized the significance of the war and of the victory of the state of Ukraine. Harris would take a measured approach, not wanting to directly intervene in the war, but providing aid to assist the Ukrainians in the defense of their lands. Harris has indicated she’s willing to broker a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, but said, “I wouldn’t [meet with Putin] bilaterally. Ukraine needs to decide the future of Ukraine.” During the Democratic Primaries, hundreds of thousands of voters wrote or bubbled in ‘Uncommitted’ or another version of the same thing, in protest of Biden’s handling of the Hamas-Israeli war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is readying a push into Southern Lebanon, where the world’s largest terrorist organization, Hezbollah has bases and weapons stored. If Netanyahu moves on with this, it could be an October surprise in the election, imperiling Democrats’ chances to win over Muslim populations in key states. Namely, Michigan, where these voters are vital for victory. Harris has noticeably shifted from Biden’s position on the matter. She’s vowed to focus more so on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, but she would continue to back Israel, though perhaps less staunchly. Harris has walked in the footsteps of Biden in her plans to handle China. If elected, she would work to strengthen America’s alliances with our Asian partners, namely Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines.
Trump
In his first term, Trump took a much different approach to foreign affairs than his predecessors. American national security agencies indicated that Russia did in fact attempt to influence the 2016 presidential election through Facebook bots, research, and various other means. In 2017, Trump met with Putin in Helsinki where he told the press that he believed Putin when he said that Russia did not interfere in the election, despite the fact that his national security officials suggested otherwise. Trump had a lot of moments like these, where he shifted decades of American foreign policy in a matter of minutes. The first impeachment of Trump focused on how he froze American aid to Ukraine in an attempt to have Ukraine fabricate a scandal about Biden and his son, Hunter. Trump has vowed to end the war in Ukraine on his first day in office. He pushed back on questions of what this would look like, arguing that giving details to his plan could compromise his ability to negotiate. On Israel, Trump makes no compromises. Overturning decades of US policy, Trump endorsed Netanyahu’s efforts to build settlements in the Palestinian West Bank. What he would do in a second term is uncertain, with most of his promises not being detailed.
Healthcare
Harris
As Vice President, Kamala Harris cast the tiebreaking vote for the Inflation Reduction Act, capping the price of insulin at $35 a month, allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices, and saving seniors an average of 400 dollars a year. Harris has promised to make Biden’s tax credits that have saved American families $800 on health care premiums permanent. Harris has capitalized on the issue of abortion, asserting that the overturning of Roe v. Wade was directly Trump’s doing. Harris has vowed to bring back the federal protections that were guaranteed under Roe through legislation.
Trump
In 2017 Trump failed to push his ‘American Healthcare Act’ through Congress. According to the Congressional Budget Office, this would have ripped away the healthcare of tens of millions of Americans, raising the amount of uninsured to 51 million. He also cut funding to enrollment programs, decreasing the amount of people who enrolled in Medicaid under his administration. When asked what his healthcare plans would be if he were to take office on January 20, Trump responded that he has “concepts of a plan.” Trump nominated three Supreme Court justices, swinging the court to a conservative majority of 6-3. Two years after Trump left office, the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, which Trump called a “beautiful thing” that he was proud it was overturned. In a second term, Trump could use the Comstock Act of 1873 to halt the distribution of abortion pills such as Mifepristone. Medication accounts for 63% of abortions, meaning that federal action to halt Mifepristone and other pills could result in more serious consequences than the overturning of Roe.
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