Vice President Kamala Harris visited the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Wednesday, using the opportunity to lay out her economic plan in greater detail. Speaking at The Economic Club of Pittsburgh, Harris gave additional information about her plan to enact price controls to prevent price gouging, and she laid out how her administration would help first-time homebuyers and small business owners.

“From the very beginning of this campaign Vice President Harris has been clear: she is not taking a single voter for granted, and she will put in the work needed to earn every single vote,” said Terrance Woodbury of HIT Strategies, the Team Harris-Walz Black voter polling firm, in a statement. “Creating an Opportunity Economy that builds on the historic progress made by the Biden-Harris Administration for Black America, does just that. According to our recent polling, Black voters’ economic priorities include reducing costs and increasing wealth. The Vice President’s Opportunity Economy agenda speaks directly to these economic priorities and will be especially important for earning the votes of undecided Black voters. 

Controlling food and drug prices

Harris mentioned her plans for what she has labeled “the opportunity economy,” with “lowering costs” as its top priority. In what has become a signature policy initiative for her, the vice president elaborated upon her plan to enact “the first-ever federal ban on corporate price gouging.”

The Harris campaign shared with Blavity statistics that indicate the benefits may be particularly strong for Black Americans; the campaign has cited federal statistics to note that Black families spend a more significant portion of their budgets on food than white families. In addition to food prices, the Harris administration also noted policies to lower prescription drug prices, including capping drug prices for all Americans (expanding the cap on insulin prices that currently applies to seniors). The Harris campaign has also indicated that her administration would negotiate lower prices for other drugs through Medicare and wipe out medical debt, again noting how high drug prices and medical debt disproportionately impact Black Americans.

Making housing, family and entrepreneurship more affordable

Harris also detailed plans to control housing prices and help small businesses. These include policies that prevent large developers from mass-purchasing properties to mark up and corporate landlords from enacting significant rent increases. Harris has also proposed down payment support for first-time homebuyers and the construction of “3 million new homes and rentals for the middle class.” According to the Harris plan, first-time homebuyers would also be eligible for $25,000 in assistance. For parents, Harris has proposed a new $5,000 child tax credit for the first year of a baby’s life and a renewal of the Biden-era child tax credit initially enacted under the America Rescue Plan. She also pledged tax breaks to help with elder care. For businesses, Harris is proposing a tenfold increase in tax deductions for small businesses, from $5,000 to $50,000.

Contrasting economic visions

Contrasting economic visions

Harris promised to enact policies to bolster the United States as the world’s leading economy, focusing on manufacturing and technology. The economic proposals contrast sharply with those favored by Republican candidate Donald Trump. The former president has centered his policy on significantly raising tariffs on foreign-made goods, a popular proposal with most voters but condemned by economists as a recipe for higher consumer goods prices. As Harris and Trump articulated their economic plans, Trump’s perceived advantage among voters on economic issues shrunk considerably, with the two nearly tied on the issue in recent polling. During her speech, Harris took a shot at Trump’s supposed business expertise, noting that her proposals were beneficial because “not everybody was handed on a silver platter $400 million and then filed for bankruptcy six times.”

“Oh, I said that. I actually said that,” the vice president added.

With her speech on Wednesday, Harris gave the most straightforward and detailed look yet at her economic plan. With a little more than one month before Election Day, Harris and Trump will continue to make their cases for how they will benefit Americans, economically and otherwise, hoping to convince the American people that their vision for the country is the best one to support.

2024 presidential electionVice President Kamala Harris