Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris recently conducted her first interview since entering the race, joined by running mate Tim Walz. During the conversation, Harris addressed several significant topics, including fracking, child poverty, and clean energy jobs.
Harris’s Stance on Fracking
Claim: In the interview, Kamala Harris stated that she would not ban fracking, insisting that her position has remained unchanged.
Verdict: This assertion requires context and may be misleading, as Harris has publicly wavered on her stance regarding fracking. In 2019, she expressed support for banning fracking, but by 2020, during the vice presidential debate, she indicated that President Biden would not end fracking, reiterating that the American public understood this position. In the recent interview, when questioned about her previous comments, Harris reaffirmed that she did not ban fracking during her vice presidency and would not do so as president.
Has Child Poverty Declined by Over 50%?
Claim: Harris claimed that actions taken during the early days of the Biden administration, specifically the extension of the child tax credit, reduced child poverty in the U.S. by over 50%.
Verdict: While child poverty rates did indeed decrease, the assertion is somewhat exaggerated. The Supplemental Poverty Measure indicates a reduction of 46% between 2020 and 2021; however, rates rose again the following year after the enhanced child tax credit expired. In 2021, the child poverty rate hit a record low of 5.2%, only to rise to 12.4% in 2022. Currently, families earning below $200,000 can receive up to $2,000 per child annually under the existing child tax credit policy. Harris has proposed restoring the enhanced credit, potentially providing families with $6,000 per child in the first year of a baby’s life.
Growth in Clean Energy Jobs
Claim: Harris asserted that more than 300,000 new clean-energy jobs have been created.
Verdict: There has indeed been significant growth in clean energy jobs under the Biden administration, but the exact figure can be uncertain. This claim relates to the Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law in August 2022, which laid the groundwork for substantial clean energy investments. A report claims that since the enactment of this act, over 334,000 jobs have been linked to new clean energy projects. However, not all projected jobs have necessarily materialized, and different organizations report varying employment figures. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, clean-energy employment has seen robust growth, outpacing the overall rate of job growth in the economy.
