Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris has flipped on another policy — banning plastic straws.
Harris’ campaign has abandoned the vice president’s previous position from the 2020 Democratic primary in which she stated unequivocally that plastic straws should be banned due to environmental considerations.
“She doesn’t support banning plastic straws,” a campaign official told Axios on Wednesday.
KAMALA HARRIS SAYS SHE SUPPORTS PLASTIC STRAW BAN DURING CNN CLIMATE CHANGE MARATHON
Democratic presidential nominee and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks at a campaign rally in Savannah, Georgia. (Reuters)
Harris was asked whether she would support a ban on “single use plastics” during a CNN town hall marathon in 2019, and specifically whether she would ban plastic straws.
“I think we should, yes,” Harris responded.
“Look, I’m going to be honest… It’s really difficult to drink out of a paper straw,” she joked. “So we kinda have to perfect that a little bit more.”
The campaign emphasized that the policy change does not lower the priority of environmental reforms for the vice president.
“She cast the tie-breaking vote on the most consequential legislation to combat climate change and create clean energy jobs in history, and as President, she is going to be focused on expanding on that progress,” the campaign told Axios.
It’s the latest in a long series of position flips the Harris campaign has undertaken as the vice president seeks to succeed President Biden in the November election.
Plastic straws wrapped in paper and plastic forks are seen at a food hall in Washington DC. Harris previously expressed support for a government ban on plastic straws during the 2020 Democratic primary, but her campaign walked this position back in a statement to Axios this week. (ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images)
Harris has been accused by voters, political pundits and the Trump campaign of flip-flopping on key policies since emerging as the Democratic Party’s nominee after President Biden dropped out of the race last month.
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On fracking, for example, Harris’ campaign announced last month that the vice president did not support a ban on the oil extraction technique that enjoys broad support in battleground states like Pennsylvania.
That position, however, is the opposite of her remarks as a primary candidate during a 2019 CNN town hall event, when Harris said there is “no question I’m in favor of banning fracking.”
Harris has also distanced herself from “Medicare for All” and semiautomatic rifle buyback programs, after publicly touting both programs during her failed primary campaign during the 2020 cycle.
Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this report.
