Kamala Harris at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert | Oct 9, 2024

 Auto-transcribed on Monday, October 14, 2024.media and text playback available on this page: https://aliceapp.ai/recordings/myzGulvZ7_w43EkYdhPcWAOD89HSIV2a

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Words: 	4,287 	
Duration: 	00:27:55 	
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Uploaded on: 	2024-10-14 12:02:17 UTC 	
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Speakers:

 Stephen Colbert - 33.1%

 Kamala Harris - 66.9%

Notes:

Summary by ChatGPT- Technology and Cybersecurity: Discussed the security measures she uses to protect her phone.- Tax Reform and Economic Plans: Emphasized fair taxation for billionaires and corporations to fund programs like extended child tax credits and healthcare cost reductions.- Support for Middle-Class Families: Advocated for policies such as affordable childcare, downpayment assistance, and capping prescription drug costs.- January 6 and Election Integrity: Highlighted the importance of upholding the Constitution and praised Republicans who have put the country above party interests.- Relatability and Campaign Vibe: Shared a casual moment with Colbert over a beer, emphasizing the importance of connection and relatability in leadership.

[00:00:00]  Stephen Colbert 
 Hey, everybody. We're back here with a democratic nominee for president, Vice President Kamala Harris. Madam Vice President, thanks so much. Thanks so much for, uh, dropping by this evening. Um, polling shows that a lot of people, especially independent voters, really want this to be a change election and that they tend to break for you in terms of thinking about change. You are a member of the president administration, uh, under a Harris administration, what would the major changes be and what would stay the same? 

[00:00:35]  Kamala Harris 
 Sure. Well, I mean, I'm obviously not Joe Biden. 

[00:00:37]  Stephen Colbert 
 Um, I know. 

[00:00:38]  Kamala Harris 
 And so that would be one change in terms of. But also, I think it's important to say with, you know, 28 days to go, I'm not Donald Trump. And so when we think about the significance of what this next generation of leadership looks like were I to be elected president, it is about, frankly, uh, um, I love the american people, and I believe in our country. I love that it is our character and nature to be an ambitious people. We have aspirations. We have dreams. We have incredible work ethics. And I just believe that we can create and build upon the success we've achieved in a way that we continue to grow opportunity and in that way, grow the strength of our nation. So, for example, my economic policies, I think of it, and I have named it as creating an opportunity economy. So it's about things like investing in small businesses. I love our small businesses. The woman who helped raise us, we call her our second mother, because my mother worked long days and hours. Um, she was a small business owner. So as a child, I grew up knowing that a small business owner, someone who is a leader in the community, hires locally, trains locally, builds, contributes to the civic and the cultural fabric. Right? So my plan includes extending a, uh, tax deduction for startup small businesses to $50,000 instead of what currently it is at $5,000, because nobody in 2024 can start up a small business with $5,000. My. I believe. And, you know, I spend a lot of time talking, in particular with young families, young people across our country. And frankly, Stephen, the american dream right now is really elusive for far too many people in terms of even aspiring to own a home. It's too expensive. We don't have enough housing. We have a housing shortage. So part of my plan is to work with the private sector, with builders and developers, to build 3 million more homes by the end of my first term, and to give first time homebuyers a $25,000 down, uh, payment assistance so they can just get their foot in the door to home ownership, which is the fastest and the most efficient way for people to build intergenerational wealth. These are the ways that I think about how we build up our country in a way that is about supporting the middle class. I come from the middle class. I'm never going to forget where I come from. And I know that the middle class and strengthening the middle class is how you strengthen America and our economy. 

[00:03:18]  Stephen Colbert 
 Well, your opponent, your opponent, uh, and his vice president the other night in the debate said, well, uh, Kamala Harris has been vice president for three and a half years. Why hasn't she fixed everything already? Can you describe to them what the job of vice president is like? And what have you told Tim Walz about the job? Have you described to him the vast powers vested in the vice presidency? 

[00:03:42]  Kamala Harris 
 I did. I have pointed out through my three and a half years of being vice president that it's vice president. And, um, there are a lot of responsibilities that you take on, but, you know, it. Interesting. Did you see that kid who was interviewed after their debate and. Oh, you have to see it, Stephen. And he gave a. Just a total civics lesson about the role of vice president. 

[00:04:03]  Stephen Colbert 
 Oh, yes, yes. In the audience. 

[00:04:04]  Kamala Harris 
 Oh, yeah, yeah, he was in the audience. I encourage anybody to look at it. You, too? It was so good. Um, but, you know, Tim walls, I have to tell you, someone asked me recently, um, what's the last big decision I made? That was a gut decision. And when I was looking at potential running mates, there are incredibly talented, experienced, wonderful people. And ultimately, I chose and asked Tim Walls because just my gut told me that he will be what I think we want in our country. You know, he reminds me of people I grew up with. We grew up in two different parts of the country. You know, he grew up in a rural area in the midwest. I grew up in California. Um, seemingly, if you look at the two of us together, we have nothing in common. But he's the kind of people I grew up with. They may have been a different race in a different part of the country. Hardworking folks, folks who are plain talking, who care about family, care about community, care about hard work. That's who Tim Walsh is. He's going to be a great vice president. 

[00:05:13]  Stephen Colbert 
 We have to take another quick break here. We'll be right back with more Vice President Kamala Harris, everybody. Hey, everybody. I'm happy to say that Vice President Kamala Harris is still with us to talk about what's going on in the world. Uh, yesterday marked one year since Hamas, uh, attacked Israel and led to the massive, um, response by Israel in Gaza. Um. Uh, many people at this point a year in, um, are not only horrified by what they're seeing there, but some people throw up their hands because they see no hope for any sort of peaceful resolution, um, especially with the spreading, uh, to southern Lebanon and Hezbollah and the attacks by Iran on Israel. Now, does anything about this give you hope? Do you know anything about what is possible in that area, reasonably that would give people reason to, frankly, keep paying attention? Because Americans will eventually throw up their hands if there's no possible solution? 

[00:06:26]  Kamala Harris 
 Uh, so yesterday we commemorated that massacre that took place on October 7 last year. And, um, Doug and I actually decided to have a very simple, brief ceremony. Um, we planted a pomegranate tree at the vice president's residence in honor of those who were lost, in honor of also what, frankly, and I spoke about this, what we must always retain, which is some level of faith in what is possible in terms of shining light on a moment of darkness, I truly do believe that's important, and it is something we learn. Regardless of your religion or just, I think, what we should all retain as some level of optimism. And in this. In this matter, we must have a ceasefire and hostage deal as immediately as possible. This war has got to end. It has to end, and we cannot lose some belief in the possibility of it, because then, to your point, we throw up our hands instead of rolling up our sleeves. But it is complex, and it is a conversation that requires probably more time than you and I have right now. 

[00:07:45]  Stephen Colbert 
 Well, how about briefly, then? Not to introduce, but briefly, we've been told that a ceasefire deal was very close several times. What does that mean? What does close mean? 

[00:07:56]  Kamala Harris 
 Close means that a lot of the details had been worked out, but details remained. And so there has been some progress, but it is meaningless unless a deal is actually reached. So I don't want to suggest to you that we should be applauded for getting close at times to a deal. The reality of it is 1200 people massacred. There are still hostages being held in Gaza. I've met with the families of hostages, both who are alive and who have, as we learned recently, who have died. I have met with families of Palestinians who have been killed, innocent people who have been killed in Gaza. And there is pain. Pain, uh, and suffering that is happening in that region of the world. And we must work, and the United States must work and not lose hope and not throw up our hands around the role we must play in urging and seeking and building toward a resolution. And the first thing that's going to unlock that is, we've got to get a deal done, and we're not going to give up. 

[00:09:04]  Stephen Colbert 
 The United States plays a role all around the world in our foreign policy. People look to us for leadership. Your opponent, Donald Trump, says that these and other, uh, this conflict, Ukraine, other things around the world, he could fix it like that with a single phone call. He loves, uh, talking about his close relationship with, uh, Viktor Orban and Xi Jinping and Kim Jong un, dictators and. 

[00:09:26]  Kamala Harris 
 Authoritarians and Vladimir, people who have been well described as murderers. 

[00:09:30]  Stephen Colbert 
 Okay, um, what do you make of the Bob Woodwards book? Uh, he heard that he's had seven phone calls, at least with Putin, since he left office. 

[00:09:40]  Kamala Harris 
 Yeah, so I heard about it today. I haven't read it. Um, but look, I said it. Even in the debate, Donald Trump, he openly admires dictators and authoritarians. He has said he wants to be a dictator on day one if he were elected again as president. He gets played by these guys. He admires so called strongmen, and he gets played because they flatter him or offer him favor. The commander in chief of the United States of, um, America must stand strong, uh, and defend the principles that we hold dear. We should stand with our allies. We should strengthen the alliances that we have, such as NATO, which is the strongest military alliance the world has ever seen. We must stand with our friend Ukraine, where Russia is attempting to change borders by force. And then you hear if this is. If everything I've heard about Bob Woodward's book is right. Donald Trump secretly sent COVID test kits to Putin for his personal use. I ask everyone here and everyone who is watching, you remember what those days were like. You remember how many people did not have tests and were trying to scramble to get them. You remember how rare it was to have one. You remember people by the hundreds were dying every day. We would watch the number every day being reported of people who were dying, people who were in hospitals without their family, where the only touch that they had was of a nurse that they hadn't met because the family could not get there. And this man is giving COVID test kits to Vladimir Putin. Think about what this means. On top of him sending love letters to Kim Jong un. No, think about it. He thinks Vladimir Putin is his friend. What about the american people? They should be your first friends. 

[00:11:51]  Stephen Colbert 
 Gift. And Hobart, on that note, friends. We'll be right back with more Vice President Kamala Harris, everybody. Hey, everybody. Boom. Welcome back to the Late show. Already in progress. Give it up for Lewis Cato and the Late show band right there. Yes, sir. Ladies and gentlemen, my fellow Americans, my guest tonight is the democratic nominee for president of the United states. Please welcome back to the Late show vice President Kamala Harris. 

[00:12:42]  Kamala Harris 
 You. 

[00:12:45]  Stephen Colbert 
 Have a smile. There you go. 

[00:13:04]  Kamala Harris 
 Thank you. Thank you. 

[00:13:16]  Stephen Colbert 
 Thank you. 

[00:13:16]  Kamala Harris 
 Thank you. Thank you. Hi, guys. Thank you. Thank you. 

[00:13:23]  Stephen Colbert 
 Thank you very much. Thank you so much. 

[00:13:33]  Kamala Harris 
 They know how to pronounce my name. Thank you all. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much. 

[00:13:42]  Stephen Colbert 
 Thank you. I was thinking the same thing. What did you just notice? 

[00:13:46]  Kamala Harris 
 I noticed that a whole lot of people know how to pronounce my name. 

[00:13:51]  Stephen Colbert 
 Thank, uh, you all very much. Madam Vice President, thank you so much for being here again. 

[00:13:54]  Kamala Harris 
 It's so good to be with you. 

[00:13:55]  Stephen Colbert 
 So always enjoyed talking to you on the show. 

[00:13:57]  Kamala Harris 
 Thank you. 

[00:13:57]  Stephen Colbert 
 It's an honor to have the opportunity to do the show with you here tonight, uh, one month from today. 

[00:14:02]  Kamala Harris 
 Yes. 

[00:14:02]  Stephen Colbert 
 Is the election in November? 

[00:14:04]  Kamala Harris 
 It is. 

[00:14:04]  Stephen Colbert 
 I hope everybody out there is registered and ready to vote. We've got so much to get to. I'll never get to all the questions that I've got here, but before we do anything, I want to talk about, uh, the recovery from Hurricane Helene and in the light of the fact that hurricane, uh, milton has strengthened once again to a, uh, category five hurricane and is headed for the west coast of Florida. You were down in Georgia and North Carolina who are still in the midst of a massive cleanup and rescue and recovery efforts. Still, what do people need to know? 

[00:14:40]  Kamala Harris 
 Well, first of all, to all of those folks in North Carolina and Georgia, please know that fema and the people on the ground are there to help you. You are entitled to help. There's a lot of misinformation, and I beseech you, I beg you to please not pay attention to it, because there are a whole lot of folks who are there to give you help and aid in terms of the immediate aftermath and what people need to do in terms of getting through the height of this emergency and this crisis, but also in terms of long term help. And, um, that means applying for it, knowing that the services are there. But I'll tell you, Stephen, I mean, there's so much devastation already from Hurricane Helene. I met a woman in Georgia who just days before lost her husband because a tree fell on their house and killed him. And I met she and her daughter days after he died. Uh. Uh, what just upsets me so is the idea that any politician would play political games with these folks, with people who are in the midst of such suffering, loss of life, loss of their homes, loss of normalcy, and then, for the sake of political gain, tell these lies in a way that is meant to make people distrust the help that is there for them to receive is something we have to say. Look, at some point, we have to work together. And I'll tell you, there are plenty of leaders who are working in a bipartisan way. I've talked to governors of both parties who are working in a bipartisan way to get the aid to people on the ground. And, um, I'm going to. 

[00:16:19]  Stephen Colbert 
 Governor Cooper and Governor McMaster and Governor Kemp are doing what's right for the people of the state. 

[00:16:23]  Kamala Harris 
 They are. They are, and they should be commended. They should be commended. 

[00:16:29]  Stephen Colbert 
 This kind of manipulation is a cynical and corrupt, uh, luxury that people are using. 

[00:16:36]  Kamala Harris 
 That's crude. Have you no empathy, man? No. For the suffering of other people. Have you no sense of purpose? If you purport to be a leader, to understand that being a leader means lifting people up in a time of need and not manipulating them, you know? 

[00:17:00]  Stephen Colbert 
 So your opponent. 

[00:17:02]  Kamala Harris 
 But before we go on, if I may, just tonight, um, the hurricane that is about to hit Florida is extremely serious and is predicted to be historic in proportion in terms of the damage it will cause. And I know there are a lot of tough Floridians who have waited out many hurricanes and may think that they can do the same with this one. This one's going to be different. And so I ask anybody who is watching, if you are in Florida, in the predicted path of this hurricane, if you got a family member who might be, you know, thinking they can wait it out, please get in touch with them. Tell them it's not going to be like the ones we've seen before. Please follow your local leaders instructions. And if they're telling you to evacuate, grab your stuff and get out. 

[00:17:47]  Stephen Colbert 
 Now. Your campaign is one of the shortest in modern history. 

[00:17:54]  Kamala Harris 
 Yes. 

[00:17:55]  Stephen Colbert 
 Does it feel short? 

[00:18:01]  Kamala Harris 
 It's definitely been a whirlwind. I mean, it's, I think, somewhere around 70 days that we've been in it. And, um, so there's a lot of catching up to do. You know, my opponent, the former president, has been running since 2020 and literally filed like that. Yeah. Right. So we, like, have a lot of time to make up for. But, um, I'm traveling around the country. I'm spending a lot of time talking with folks, listening to folks. And the one thing I can report back from the field, if you will, is that people are exhausted by that old, tired playbook of Donald Trump's. They really are. And even if they voted for him, even if they voted for him in the past, there are a lot of folks who are just saying, you know, enough of the rhetoric that's about trying to divide the country and have Americans point their fingers at each other. You know, folks are ready to turn the page. It's like, let's chart a new way forward. And what I'm seeing is that a lot of Americans, regardless of their party, Republicans, Democrats, independents, they're ready for a new generation of leadership that is about solutions and common sense and finding common ground. And that is what I am offering now. 

[00:19:17]  Stephen Colbert 
 Late July is when Joe Biden stepped aside. 

[00:19:21]  Kamala Harris 
 Yeah. 

[00:19:21]  Stephen Colbert 
 Make room for you. And I don't like to brag about this, but ever since you became the nominee, you and I have been texting every day. You usually send me a text like, hey, Steven, it's Kamala. Uh, for just dollar five, you can make a difference in this campaign. Text stop to quit. And I'll go, like, you know. Cause, you know, like, I'll be playful. I'll go, stop like that. And you know, I don't mean it because they don't stop. I'm curious. You have a phone. Do you get texts from you? 

[00:19:54]  Kamala Harris 
 No. My phone has so many protections. 

[00:19:58]  Stephen Colbert 
 Can you give me those? 

[00:19:59]  Kamala Harris 
 No. You can. It's called outreach, Steven. 

[00:20:03]  Stephen Colbert 
 Oh, I totally agree with the campaign. I want to go to. I'm going to talk about the debate for a second, which was one of the greatest debate performances I had ever seen anyone do, regardless of the panel. But I want to ask you about this. Tell us this moment went viral from the debate. Can you tell us what you're thinking at this moment right here? And keep in mind, this is CB's, so keep it clean. What was going through your mind there? 

[00:20:34]  Kamala Harris 
 Um, it's family tv, right? It starts with a w. There's a letter in between, and then the last letter is FDA. 

[00:20:51]  Stephen Colbert 
 Um, your economic plan includes, um, small, um, business tax credits, ah, childcare credits, downpayment assistance and other things. Those are the major ones people will talk about. One of the ways that you want to help pay for some of that is to have billionaires pay their fair share in taxes, okay? 

[00:21:11]  Kamala Harris 
 And big corporations. 

[00:21:12]  Stephen Colbert 
 And big corporations. You know, uh, there are, um, quite a few billionaires who support you. You are from northern California, after all, where they grow them in fields out there. Who's your favorite billionaire? Cause we all have a favorite billionaire on 3123. Oprah. I'm sorry, I claimed Oprah. You can't take her now. 

[00:21:33]  Kamala Harris 
 But in all seriousness. Uh. Oh, no, no, but not in all seriousness. But in all seriousness, we have to agree that teachers and firefighters and nurses should not be paying a higher tax rate than billionaires. And the biggest corporations disagree. Right? 

[00:21:49]  Stephen Colbert 
 Disagree. 

[00:21:50]  Kamala Harris 
 And so, look, I'm not mad at anybody for creating wealth. Good for you. You work hard. You create wealth for you and your family. Good for you. I am a capitalist, but, look, I'm also a devout public servant. I know the limitations of government. But I also know that we need to make sure that everyone is paying their fair share so that we can do the work of extending, as I intend to do, the child tax credit to $6,000 for the first year of a child's life because that young family could use that money to buy a car seat, to buy a crib. What we need to do to bring down the cost of health care in America. We've capped the cost of insulin for our seniors at dollar 35 a month. It's my intention. Cap the cost of prescription medication for all Americans. They're paying too much. What? 

[00:22:40]  Stephen Colbert 
 We have to take a. We'll take a quick break here. 

[00:22:42]  Kamala Harris 
 Okay? 

[00:22:43]  Stephen Colbert 
 But please don't go away. We'll be right back with more Vice President Kamala Harris, everybody. Stick around. Hey, everybody, we're back with Vice President Kamala Harris. You know, at first, when you first became the nominee and, uh, named Tim Walz as your vice president, uh, nominee, uh, people were calling it the vibe election. All the vibes were all good. But elections, I think, are one on vibes because one of the old saws is they just want somebody they can have a beer with. So would you like to have a beer with me so I can tell people what that's like? Okay, this was. Now, we asked ahead of time because I can't just be given a drink to the vice president of the United States without asking. You asked for Miller High life. You asked for Miller High life. I'm just curious. 

[00:23:39]  Kamala Harris 
 Okay. The last time I had beer was at a baseball game with Doug. So, uh, cheers. Cheers. 

[00:23:46]  Stephen Colbert 
 There you go. Ooh, that tastes like the beautiful city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

[00:23:56]  Kamala Harris 
 Champagne of beers. 

[00:23:57]  Stephen Colbert 
 There you go. Um, so, uh, that covers Wisconsin. 

[00:24:01]  Kamala Harris 
 Yeah. 

[00:24:02]  Stephen Colbert 
 Okay. 

[00:24:02]  Kamala Harris 
 Okay. 

[00:24:03]  Stephen Colbert 
 All right, let's do Pennsylvania. Okay, let's do Pennsylvania. Okay. Eagles, um, or Steelers. And no one will be mad. Just choose one of those. I'm sure we'll be fine. 

[00:24:16]  Kamala Harris 
 49 ers. 

[00:24:20]  Stephen Colbert 
 You know, presidency requires a certain courage, madam. 

[00:24:24]  Kamala Harris 
 No one will be mad at you for being loyal to you. You just can't be right. 

[00:24:30]  Stephen Colbert 
 Um, I want to ask you a question that Speaker Johnson recently called a gotcha question. 

[00:24:36]  Kamala Harris 
 Okay. 

[00:24:37]  Stephen Colbert 
 And it's a question that a lot of Republicans are avoiding. Um, did Donald Trump lose the 2020 election? 

[00:24:49]  Kamala Harris 
 It's just. 

[00:24:50]  Stephen Colbert 
 I know it's a hard question. 

[00:24:53]  Kamala Harris 
 You know, I'm going to tell you what. Some of the people in my rallies, quite a few people are showing up, by the way, uh, big rally. Um, you know, when you've lost, you lost millions of jobs, you lost manufacturing, you lost automotive plants, you lost the election. What does that make you? A loser. This is what somebody at my rally said. I thought it was funny. 

[00:25:29]  Stephen Colbert 
 It's accurate. It's accurate. 

[00:25:31]  Kamala Harris 
 This is what happens when I drink beer. 

[00:25:33]  Stephen Colbert 
 Now, as vice president, you oversee the certification of the electoral votes, and you'll be doing that on January 6. 

[00:25:41]  Kamala Harris 
 That's right. 

[00:25:42]  Stephen Colbert 
 Do you agree with Donald Trump that you could just name yourself the next president? Well, I mean, that's his argument, not mine. 

[00:25:51]  Kamala Harris 
 Well, here's what I would like to raise about that piece. You know, um, when people are often applying for a job, they'll ask, well, why is the job open? Okay, one must ask, why is the job of Donald Trump's running mate? Why was it open? And it was open because his vice president, President Mike Pence, stood for country above party, stood for constitution above favor and pleasing someone who would and tried actively, including inciting a violent mob to undo the will of the people, undo the outcome of a free and fair election. And I do believe, you know, in this race, I am proud to have the support of, uh, a lot of Republicans who worked for both presidents Bush for John McCain, for Mitt Romney, for Donald Trump, who are saying, listen, we gotta put country above party. We have to honor the Constitution of the United States, and we want a president who will actually uphold the rule of law and take seriously the oath to the constitution of the United States. And so when I think about this whole issue about January 6, for a lot of folks who are supporting me, and I think a lot of folks who voted for Donald Trump in the past, that was a bridge too far. That was a bridge too far. And that's what I think is going to motivate and has motivated a lot of people to say, look, it's time to turn the page. We need a new way forward. Enough with the nonsense. We're exhausted. Let's just. Let's push toward the future of our country. Let's not go backwards. And I think that's what's motivating a lot of people to get involved. 

[00:27:41]  Stephen Colbert 
 Well, Madam Vice president, thank you so much for being here. Such a pleasure. Vice President Kamala Harris. She's running for president of the United States. Voting is in one month. We'll be right back.