Ohio Senator JD Vance recently criticized Vice President Kamala Harris, accusing her of running a “copycat campaign” after her staffers revealed that she was shifting her stance on key policies, including an electric vehicle mandate. Vance spoke at a campaign event in Erie, Pennsylvania, where he emphasized the importance of the American trucking industry, energy policy, and the economy. He claimed that Harris wants to increase diesel and gasoline prices and require all truckers in the country to drive electric vehicles, which he believes would worsen the inflation crisis.
Harris had previously led the Electric Vehicle Charging Action Plan to ensure that 50% of car sales would be electric vehicles by 2030. The Biden-Harris administration also finalized a regulation requiring half of all new car and truck sales to be electric by 2024. However, recent statements from her campaign suggest that she does not actually support an electric vehicle mandate. This shift in position, along with changes in stance on other key issues such as fracking, automatic weapons buyback programs, border wall construction, and Medicare for all, has prompted criticism from Vance and others.
Vance accused Harris of wanting to put truckers out of business and force them to switch to electric trucks. He argued that this would exacerbate the current inflation crisis and pledged that a Trump-Vance administration would stop job-killing regulations like the EV mandate. He emphasized the importance of American truckers in the economy and expressed concerns about how such regulations could impact their livelihoods. Harris’ campaign responded by highlighting policy differences between her and Trump, as well as Vance, particularly in areas such as abortion rights, middle-class taxes, and unity.
Despite accusations of copying Trump’s policies, the Harris campaign emphasized that the Vice President supports a different agenda, opposing dangerous initiatives like Project 2025. Vance’s campaign has been making stops in battleground states like Pennsylvania and Michigan to engage with voters on key issues, including energy policy, trucking industry, and job regulations. The Senator’s criticism of Harris’ changing positions on policies and accusations of running a copycat campaign underscore the heated political climate leading up to the next election. Voter engagement and awareness of policy differences between candidates are crucial aspects of the campaign as both sides seek to rally support in key states.
