Harris said 'next question' to query on race, not economy | Fact check
The claim: Video shows Kamala Harris said 'next question' to avoid CNN question on economy
A Sept. 25 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows Vice President Kamala Harris being interviewed by CNN's Dana Bash.
"I wonder what you say to voters who do want to go back when it comes to the economy specifically, because their groceries were less expensive, housing was more affordable when Donald Trump was president," Bash asks Harris in the video.
In the clip, Harris responds, "Next question, please."
The post's caption reads, "Always deflecting the questions."
The post was liked more than 2,000 times in a day.
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Our rating: Altered
The clip is deceptively edited. Videos and a transcript of the August interview posted by CNN show Harris did not say "next question" to Bash's question about the economy. Harris made the remark at a different point in the interview, in response to a question about her race.
Video misleads by splicing separate interview moments together
The clip in the Instagram post shows Harris and her running mate on the Democratic presidential ticket, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, sitting down with Bash, CNN's chief political correspondent, for an interview that aired Aug. 29.
But video of the interview posted by CNN shows the clip in the post was altered to change Harris' answer to Bash's question about voters and the economy. Harris did not deflect the question by saying, "Next question, please." Rather, Harris said she and President Joe Biden inherited an economy that "had crashed" because of Trump's "mismanagement" of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The video and a CNN transcript of the exchange show Harris went on to say, in part:
"When we came in, our highest priority was to do what we could to rescue America. And today, we know that we have inflation at under 3%. A lot of our policies have led to the reality that America recovered faster than any wealthy nation around the world. But you are right. Prices in particular for groceries are still too high. The American people know it. I know it. Which is why my agenda includes what we need to do to bring down the price of groceries. For example, dealing with an issue like price gouging."
Fact check: Biden, Harris net worth nowhere near viral post's claim
Harris did make the "next question" remark in the interview, but it came in response to a question about comments Trump had made about Harris' racial identity. Here's how that exchange played out, according to the transcript:
"BASH: Speaking of Republicans, I want to ask you about your opponent, Donald Trump. I was a little bit surprised, people might be surprised to hear that you have never interacted with him, met him face to face. That’s gonna change soon, but what I want to ask you about is what he said last month. He suggested that you happened to turn Black recently for political purposes, questioning a core part of your identity.
HARRIS: Yeah.
BASH: Any–
HARRIS: Same old, tired playbook. Next question, please. (LAUGH)
BASH: That’s it?
HARRIS: That’s it.
CNN video of the exchange makes it clear this was the portion of the interview used in the altered clip to make it seem as if Harris dismissed Bash's question about the economy.
USA TODAY reached out to the Instagram user who shared the post but did not immediately receive a response.
Our fact-check sources:
CNN (YouTube), Aug. 29, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz CNN interview (part 1): Plan for first day in office
CNN (YouTube), Aug. 29, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz CNN interview (part 2): Israel-Hamas war
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Harris didn't say 'next question' to CNN economy query | Fact check