Harris to Offer Pitch to Boost Manufacturing in Play for Voters

Jennifer Epstein
·5-min read

(Bloomberg) -- Kamala Harris will outline a “pragmatic” economic vision and new initiatives to bolster domestic manufacturing in a speech Wednesday in Pittsburgh, as the Democratic presidential nominee looks to counter Republican rival Donald Trump’s polling advantage on the election’s defining issue.

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The address will emphasize her willingness to work with business leaders to grow the overall economy while also stressing the importance of protecting workers’ wages and benefits, according to a senior campaign official who requested anonymity to detail the speech ahead of the event. She’ll look to draw contrast with Trump, casting his dramatic proposals to overhaul the nation’s tax code as a boon only for the wealthiest.

“For Donald Trump, our economy works best if it works for those who own the big skyscrapers. Not those who build them. Not those who wire them. Not those who mop the floors,” Harris plans to say, according to an excerpt provided by the official.

The campaign is also preparing a lengthy document explaining her economic vision, one person familiar with the planning said on the condition of anonymity to discuss the unreleased materials.

The event to amplify Harris’ economic vision comes as voters say they don’t know enough about her policies and as Trump also ramps up his messaging. On Tuesday, the former president spoke in swing-state Georgia where he pledged to use a combination of tax incentives and tariffs to force foreign companies to shift more production to the US, in a bid to transform the US economy into a major exporter.

The setting of Harris’ address — in Pittsburgh, a city with a proud industrial past and deep ties to the steel industry and organized labor — is intended to underscore her pitch to blue-collar workers and rank-and-file union members.

But Harris’ pitch is not just for lower- and middle-class workers anxious about President Joe Biden’s handling of the economy and drawn to Trump’s populist agenda. The vice president’s message will also target business leaders, seeking to cast herself as a leader who will work with them to grow the economy.

Polls show that voters have warmed on Harris’ economic proposals since she entered the race two months ago. Still, with just under six weeks remaining until Election Day, Harris aides and allies acknowledge they have more work to do.

“It’s an ongoing effort,” said Democratic pollster Celinda Lake. “She’s got a lot of economic ads. She’s got this economic speech. She’s on the road, and her stump speech always includes some of these proposals, but it’s just very, very difficult to break through right now.”

Competing Measures

The fight between Trump and Harris over the economy has intensified this week with a series of dueling events. At campaign stops this week, Trump has threatened to hit farm machinery maker Deere & Co. with 200% tariffs if it shifts production to Mexico and said he wants to get foreign companies to create more manufacturing jobs in the US.

Harris has said she intends to prioritize building an “opportunity economy,” where federal policy helps give Americans an equal shot at fulfilling their potential.

So far, she has offered plans to combat the soaring prices of groceries and prescription drugs, and make it easier for Americans to launch small businesses and buy their first homes. She has also hinted at forthcoming proposals to help caregivers, including capping child-care costs at 7% of income.

And she has also tried to expand her outreach to business, seeking to cast herself as a pro-capitalist, pro-growth candidate. At a fundraiser in New York on Sunday, she said she wanted to bolster investments in emerging sectors like cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence.

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By some measures, Harris has made a dent. In mid-August, just before the Democratic National Convention, a CBS News national poll found that Trump led Harris by 13 percentage points among likely voters who said the economy was a major factor guiding their candidate choice. By last week, that margin had fallen to 6 points in the same poll.

“The trend is her friend,” billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban said Tuesday on a Harris campaign call to contrast her economic plans and Trump’s. “She’s obviously trending in the right direction and so she’s doing something right.”

She’s also offered some details about her economic agenda and rolled out proposals to help boost Americans’ finances, including plans to fight grocery-store price gouging and provide first-time homebuyers with up to $25,000 in down payment assistance.

“A lot of blue-collar voters are looking to see what an economic plan is going to do to help,” Lake said, adding that with Harris they want “continued affirmation” her approach will differ from Biden’s.

Voters have given Biden poor marks on his handling of the economy — perceptions which are a liability for Harris as well.

Lindsay Owens, executive director of Groundwork Action, a progressive economic advocacy group, said Harris must continue to stress the differences between her and Trump on the economy.

“More Americans need to hear the contrast,” she said. Harris during her debate with Trump earlier this month, cited studies from Goldman Sachs, the Wharton School and others that project better outcomes if she is elected.

Lake said voters in swing states, though, may be on a different track — with the electorate in those battlegrounds being bombarded with campaigning and advertising from Trump and outside groups supporting his candidacy.

The campaign’s internal research suggests voters are drawn to Harris when they learn about her through her own voice, according to the campaign official, leaving allies hopeful the speech will help chip away at Trump’s edge on the economy.

“While 40-some days seems short,” said Cuban, “it’s still a long time to be able to communicate.”

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