ANALYSIS | Harris and Trump compete for the center

Gonzalo Zegarra

(CNN) — The week closed with some interesting, off-script promises on the environment from Kamala Harris and on abortion from Donald Trump.

Harris changes

The vice president and Democratic presidential candidate made it clear during an exclusive interview with CNN that she now supports fracking, the oil and gas extraction process that is largely opposed by climate and environmental activists.

“As vice president, I cast the tie-breaking vote that increased fracking permits. So I’m very clear about where I stand,” she said, arguing that the U.S. can have a clean energy economy and still embrace fracking.

Key quotes from CNN’s interview with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz

Trump contradicts himself

The former president and Republican candidate has proposed that the U.S. government or insurance companies pay for expensive in vitro fertilization treatments, prompting opposition from both abortion rights activists and conservatives who favor small government.

“I keep hearing that I’m against it, and I’m actually very much in favor of it,” Trump said at a town hall in Wisconsin. It’s unclear how he would square a costly government mandate with his long-standing opposition to the Affordable Care Act, which also required insurance companies to cover certain services.

Trump also had to clarify his stance on Florida’s six-week abortion ban. Trump told NBC News that he believes the six-week ban is “too short” for women. “It needs to be longer,” he said.

But he later told Fox News that he would oppose a ballot initiative in Florida that would reverse the current six-week policy put in place by Republicans who run the state government.

Trump’s rhetoric against the six-week ban but actual support for it in his home state is contradictory at best, but it also speaks to the difficulty of his position.

What do Trump’s abortion doubts mean for his campaign?

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Vice President Kamala Harris sit down for an interview with CNN’s Dana Bash on Thursday, August 29, 2024, at Kim’s Café in Savannah, Georgia. Credit: Will Lanzoni/CNN

There are obvious political explanations

On the one hand, Harris acknowledges the threat of the climate crisis and boasts about the government’s record on climate policy.

On the other hand, he also hopes to hold on to Pennsylvania and Michigan, “blue wall” states that Joe Biden won in 2020. Fracking is big business in both places.

Meanwhile, recent polls have shown a strong lead for Harris among female voters, though the race remains tight overall.

On the one hand, Trump wants conservatives to give him credit for appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, which allowed some states to severely limit or end access to abortion.

On the other hand, a more moderate stance on abortion and support for more affordable IVF could attract women.

Trump’s reaction to Kamala Harris’ speech

Look across the hall

“Yes, I would,” Harris said simply in the CNN interview, when asked if she would put a Republican in her Cabinet. “Absolutely,” said Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, when asked by Fox News if a second Trump administration would put a Democrat at the table.

There is a long history of multi-party cabinets in the United States, but neither the first Trump administration nor the Biden administration brought in a voice from the other party when they had the chance.

For reference, then-President Barack Obama’s Transportation Secretary was Republican Ray LaHood, and then-President George W. Bush’s Transportation Secretary was Democrat Norman Mineta.

At this month’s Democratic convention, there were Republican speakers every night. Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger and former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan were the main speakers warning about Trump.

Change of party

Kinzinger, a longtime Trump critic, has the kind of foreign policy views that would be welcomed in the old-school GOP of Sens. Mitt Romney or Mitch McConnell, who have acknowledged that the party has moved away from them. Former Rep. Liz Cheney, another hawk who says Trump should not be elected, has not endorsed Harris but has said she will not vote for Trump.

On the other side, Trump won the support of former Representative Tulsi Gabbard, an Iraq War veteran and former Democrat who made a name for herself as an anti-war activist.

The parties have drifted apart on foreign policy. Following Trump’s lead, many Republicans now question giving Ukraine additional aid to counter Russian aggression, for example.

Along with Gabbard, Trump named another former Democrat, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., to his transition team. Kennedy’s skepticism of vaccines, opposition to processed foods and environmental activism might appeal to some on the far left. But Kennedy drew the ire of family members and Democrats by supporting Trump.

A public retreat from identity politics by Democrats

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at Alro Steel, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, in Potterville, Mich. Credit: Alex Brandon/AP

Conservatives have focused on fighting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in government and business, and Trump has sought to question both Harris’s identity and her qualities. Harris, for her part, has avoided openly appealing to minority groups.

When CNN’s Dana Bash asked Harris about Trump’s ridiculous insult that Harris had recently “gone black” for political reasons, Harris did not respond. “Same old tired strategy,” she said. “Next question, please.”

Bash later noted that Harris did not mention gender or race in her acceptance speech for the nomination, and asked the vice president about an inspiring photo of Harris’ young great-niece looking up at her during the speech, wondering how Harris feels about the fact that her candidacy means so much to so many people.

Before saying she was honored, Harris distanced herself from the historic nature of her candidacy.

“I am running because I believe I am the best person to do this job at this time, for all Americans, regardless of my race and gender,” she said.

Trump should avoid insults and focus on politics

Even Trump has heard from his advisers, according to a recent report by CNN’s Kristen Holmes and Steve Contorno, that he should avoid the insults that are in his DNA and focus on the political contrasts with Harris.

Some of the policies he’s pushing sound like they came from Democrats: appealing to wage earners by asking to exempt tip income from taxes, and now an in vitro fertilization proposal aimed at anyone struggling to afford infertility treatments.

None of this means the country isn’t divided, and you can bet that when Trump and Harris meet in their first debate on Sept. 10, hosted by ABC News, each will try to paint the other as an extremist. Trump, moreover, can be asked to avoid name-calling and focus on policy, but so far he has been unable or unwilling to do so.

But these broader calls for specific, cross-cutting policies from both sides show that presidential campaigns see the value in softening their rhetoric and moderating their stances as they seek to win the White House.