RALEIGH, United States, Aug 16, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Kamala Harris is expected to
take on companies unfairly jacking up prices as she sets out her economic
agenda Friday in her first major policy announcement as the Democratic
Party's presidential nominee.

The vice president, who replaced President Joe Biden atop the ticket last
month, has been carried by surging enthusiasm, bolstered by new government
figures this week showing inflation cooling.

More Americans now trust Harris to handle the economy than her Republican
rival Donald Trump, according to a new University of Michigan poll, the first
time in this election cycle that the former president has been behind on the
issue.

But with the Democratic National Convention just days away, the 59-year-old
vice president has been under increasing pressure to tell voters exactly what
she stands for.

And while she has previewed a handful of policies, she has yet to settle on a
concrete plan for governing, instead framing the sprint to the November 5
election in broad terms as a "fight for the future."

"Elections aren't just about winning. They're about accumulating political
capital for a particular agenda, which Ms. Harris can't do unless she
articulates one," the conservative Wall Street Journal said in an editorial.

Harris's first economic proposal -- to not tax tips -- perplexed some
Democrats, who mocked the proposal as a "ploy" for votes after Trump first
floated something similar.

She was on firmer ground on Thursday as she touted a likely vote-winning cut
in medication costs for seniors and took part in her first joint public event
with Biden since she replaced him amid concerns over his mental acuity.

In her widely anticipated speech in Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday, Harris
is expected to call on Congress to pass the first federal ban on so-called
"price-gouging" that will come with penalties on food companies that unfairly
increase prices.

- Personal attacks -

Harris will also draw a contrast with Trump's economic vision, US media
reported, arguing that his plan for tariffs of up to 20 percent on imports
will drive up costs for food and other everyday items.

Some strategists have been telling Harris to keep things vague -- avoiding
potentially divisive granular policy detail -- as long as the wave of
enthusiasm over her candidacy shows no signs of breaking.

Others have advised her to put some distance between herself and Biden, who
has struggled in his approval ratings on the economy, although their joint
appearance Thursday suggested they remain close.

Harris has adopted much of Biden's economic agenda, promising to eradicate
"junk fees" while bringing down prescription drug prices and housing costs --
and keeping the president's no-tax-hikes pledge for those making under
$400,000.

On Friday, she will "launch an urgent and comprehensive four-year plan to
lower housing costs for working families and end America's housing shortage",
campaign officials said.

Harris will call for the construction of three million new housing units over
the course of her first term, introduce increased tax incentives to builders
of starter homes and rental housing, and take on corporate landlords who are
jacking up rents.

Trump has been seething since Biden bowed out of the presidential race and
passed the torch to Harris on July 21, and Republicans have been begging the
former president to focus on policy and quit his personal attacks on his new
opponent.

But Trump has been unable to stay on message, griping about Harris's crowd
sizes, attacking her mixed race heritage and calling the former California
attorney general stupid.

In a rambling North Carolina speech Wednesday meant to focus on his own
economic message, Trump devoted much of his attention to personal insults and
even said he was "not sure" that the economy is the "most important subject"
in the election.