Key points in US presidential candidate Kamala Harris' economic agenda

Vice President Harris plans to detail some of her economic plans in a speech in North Carolina on August 16. She will address cost reductions and “unreasonable price increases,” signaling the importance of consumer prices to American voters in the November 5 election.

Inflation fell below 3% in July for the first time in nearly 3 1/2 years, the Labor Department said, but prices for food and consumer goods remained well above pre-pandemic levels.

The economy remains the top concern for American voters, who generally see Republicans as better economic stewards.

Harris’ economic agenda closely resembles that of President Joe Biden and is aimed at appealing to the middle class. Advisers say her campaign will pay particular attention to what works with voters in battleground states, with less than 90 days to go until the presidential election.

“Shared values, different vision,” an aide said, describing the differences between Harris’ economic agenda and Biden’s. “She’s not different from him in terms of substance, but she’ll emphasize the points that are most important to her,” the aide said.

Ms Harris' campaign declined to comment.

Mr Trump’s campaign has considered new tax cuts for middle-class households, and Mr Trump has proposed eliminating the payroll tax — something Ms Harris also did in Las Vegas last week.

Harris is passionate about “financial issues for working families, especially those with children,” a Harris adviser told Reuters. She is a supporter of the child tax credit, which reduces the tax burden on low-income families.

“She will continue that,” the adviser said.

Progressive economic ideas often find support among voters, but they are often difficult to pass into law. Most of Harris’s and Trump’s economic priorities require congressional approval. The child tax credit bill passed the House but stalled in the Senate this year.

Not all elements of Ms Harris' economic agenda will appear in the Aug. 16 speech, and the draft of the speech is still being finalized.

Her campaign wants to avoid dividing voters and drawing criticism from business groups over specifics, and will be "strategically vague" in areas like energy.

Ms. Harris no longer supports measures from her short-lived 2020 presidential campaign, such as banning shale gas fracking or Medicare for All, advisers say.

She will push for plans to reduce the cost of renting and buying a home, including funding more affordable housing and building climate-resilient communities.

“She’s very passionate about housing because we know and she knows very well that housing is a crisis in this country,” said Marcia Fudge, an adviser to Harris and former secretary of Housing and Urban Development under Biden.

Harris will also contrast with Trump on tax and tariff policy, and keep Biden’s promise not to raise taxes on people earning less than $400,000 a year, advisers say. Trump cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% and implemented other tax cuts that are set to expire next year.

Mr Trump has promised to make the tax cuts permanent and proposed new tariffs on imports, an idea Ms Harris has rejected. The Trump campaign on Monday tied Ms Harris to Mr Biden’s economic record.

“America cannot afford four more years of Kamala’s failed economic policies. President Trump has a proven track record of making this country prosperous and affordable, and Americans can trust him to put more money back in their pockets,” Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.