Vice President Kamala Harris has unveiled her economic agenda, an extensive 80-page plan focusing heavily on American manufacturing and addressing various national issues from tariffs to tax credits. Brookings Institution Senior Fellow David Wessel joins Catalysts to discuss how VP Harris's economic agenda differs from that of former President Donald Trump.

Wessel suggests Harris has two main goals with this plan: to "prove" her economic credentials to voters and to "counter the notion" spread by Trump that she's a socialist.

He notes a "clear difference" in their approaches to economic issues such as tariffs. While Trump believes in and intends to use tariffs, Wessel explains, "I think both of them are trying to double down on a wear for American manufacturing." Wessel explains that Trump plans to use tariffs to direct economic outcomes while reducing regulation and allowing markets to "do what it wants." Harris, while maintaining China tariffs, aims to use more carrots to encourage global investors to invest in American workers.

Wessel adds: "It's true that manufacturing jobs tend to be good jobs. They're more likely to be union jobs than some others. But most Americans work in non-manufacturing jobs and people who suffer from globalization are not only manufacturing workers." He suggests this emphasis on manufacturing has become "a metaphor on how do we make the middle class better," noting its importance in key swing states and its consequent prominence in these candidates' campaigns.

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This post was written by Angel Smith