CNN
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US Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday criticized Donald Trump’s call for comprehensive tariff increases, saying the former president “simply does not take his views on the issue very seriously.”

“You don’t just throw around the idea of ​​blanket tariffs. And that’s part of the problem with Donald Trump,” Harris told MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle in a short clip previewing an interview scheduled to air later Wednesday.

In excerpts from the same interview, however, Harris refused to comment on how she would implement some of her own economic plans.

Harris has been criticized for rarely agreeing to interviews and press conferences, and her campaign team has slowly increased the frequency of her impromptu – but often friendly – appearances, often targeting minority voters and swing-state audiences.

On Wednesday, she attacked Trump for not having a plan for tariffs that goes beyond a “talking point.” Trump has said he will impose heavy tariffs on companies that do not manufacture their goods in the United States, raising hundreds of billions of dollars that the former president said would benefit the American people.

He has promised a 200 percent tariff on car imports from Mexico and a further tariff of over 60 percent on all Chinese imports.

However, Trump denies that such tariff increases are actually realistic, according to economists: companies would pass these costs on to consumers in the form of higher prices.

“He’s just not very serious about his views on some of these issues,” Harris said. “And you have to be serious and have a plan — a real plan that’s not just a talking point that ends with a shout-out at a political rally, but one where you actually think about how the investment will pay off and what the economic impact will be for people.”

Harris also said the United States would need to “raise corporate taxes” to fund her economic proposals, which include an expanded child tax credit, down payment assistance for first-time home buyers and more.

However, she did not say how she would raise those taxes if Republicans took control of the Senate after the November elections.

“It’s about everyone paying their fair share,” she said of corporations and wealthy Americans. “I’m not mad at anyone who’s successful, but everyone should pay their fair share.”

The interview came after Harris gave an economic policy speech in Pittsburgh in which she promised to expand the country’s manufacturing industry.

“We will prioritize investments in strengthening factory towns, retrofitting existing factories, hiring local workers and working with unions, because no one who grows up in America’s largest industrial or agricultural centers should be left behind,” Harris said in her speech to the Economic Club of Pittsburgh.

Harris told MSNBC that Trump left office with “the worst economic situation since the Great Depression,” citing the decline in manufacturing jobs under the former president, whose final year in office also saw the economy hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

She said Trump’s agenda would benefit wealthy Americans and large corporations rather than the middle class.

“Donald Trump has a history of catering to very rich people,” Harris said. “My view on the economy is that when the middle class grows, America’s economy is stronger.”

Last week, Harris answered questions from Oprah Winfrey, the television mogul who endorsed Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention. Last week, she was also interviewed by Stephanie “Chiquibaby” Himonidis, a popular Spanish-language radio host and podcaster, and this week she recorded an interview with the podcast “All the Smoke,” hosted by former NBA players Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes.

Harris answered questions from the National Association of Black Journalists last week and gave interviews to local news outlets in key swing states like Pennsylvania.

This story has been updated with additional information.