The media adulation for Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign may still be strong in general, but several major liberal outlets haven’t been able to stomach her latest economic policy proposal.
Harris announced Wednesday that she would institute a "federal ban on price gouging on food and groceries" as president in an attempt to stop "big corporations" from taking advantage of consumers, and outlets like the Washington Post, CNN, and Newsweek published reports shredding the idea.
"Whether the Harris proposal wins over voters remains to be seen, but if sound economic analysis still matters, it won’t," the liberal-leaning Washington Post editorial board wrote on Friday.
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If enacted, the Harris campaign’s proposal would give authority to the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general to impose harsh penalties on companies for setting excessively high prices.
"There’s a big difference between fair pricing in competitive markets and excessive prices unrelated to the costs of doing business," the Harris campaign said in a statement. "Americans can see that difference in their grocery bills."
The Post’s editorial board took Harris to task on the idea, stating it’s not even clear what her plan is. "Ms. Harris says she’ll target companies that make ‘excessive’ profits, whatever that means." It also expressed relief that the plan was getting pummeled out of the gate.
"Thankfully, this gambit by Ms. Harris has been met with almost instant skepticism, with many critics citing President Richard M. Nixon’s failed price controls from the 1970s."
A prominent Washington Post opinion columnist was even harsher on Harris’ price control proposal this week. Columnist Catherine Rampell wrote on Thursday, "It’s hard to exaggerate how bad this policy is. It is, in all but name, a sweeping set of government-enforced price controls across every industry, not only food."
Rampell added that it flies in the face of free market economics, adding that "Supply and demand would no longer determine prices or profit levels. Far-off Washington bureaucrats would. The FTC would be able to tell, say, a Kroger in Ohio the acceptable price it can charge for milk."
The columnist also said the policy gives credence to those saying Harris has "Communist" political leanings. "If your opponent claims you’re a ‘communist,’ maybe don’t start with an economic agenda that can (accurately) be labeled as federal price controls," she wrote.
A day later, Rampell reversed her condemnation of the proposal after watching Harris’ speech about her economic plans. In an X post, the columnist wrote, "Yes there was still some silliness in her speech, but her comments on prices were more toned down than campaign factsheet sent to reporters (punishing companies that raise prices above their costs etc). A generic call to increase antitrust enforcement is fine and I support it."
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CNN went after Harris’ price control plan as well. In a Thursday night segment, CNN anchor Abby Phillip scoffed at the proposal, appearing to agree with National Review senior writer Noah Rothman that the plan is just a tactic to snag "economically illiterate" voters.
"Is this just a ploy? Because it sounds kind of like it," Phillip asked her panel of CNN guests, which included Vanderbilt University professor Michael Eric Dyson.
Dyson dismissed the criticism, saying, "Well, look, you know, if you like it, it‘s called good policy. If you don‘t like it, you call it pandering." However, an incredulous Phillip fired back, "But is it really policy? I mean, ‘price gouging’?"
Dyson’s follow up suggested he didn’t even believe it was a realistic proposal. "Look, if she could do that, Lord, have mercy," he said, adding, "I mean, she might need to be the pope as opposed to the president, but she‘s able at least to set the tone."
CNN economics reporter Elisabeth Buchwald published a report Friday featuring experts detailing how "Harris’ plan to stop price gouging could create more problems than it solves."
The reporter cited Gavin Roberts, the chair of Weber State University’s economics department, writing, "When prices are high, in most cases, the best policy action in response is actually taking no action."
The price control plan is "’more likely to maintain that status quo,’ he said because it would keep new competition from moving in to take advantage of the bigger profit margins — competition that could have helped lower prices in the long run."
She also quoted Obama administration economist Jason Furman, who told the New York Times, "This is not sensible policy, and I think the biggest hope is that it ends up being a lot of rhetoric and no reality."
A Newsweek piece from reporter Jesus Mesa also trotted out economics experts to make the case that the policy proposal is "riddled with problems," "would be unlikely to address the root causes of price increases and could even backfire."
Mesa quoted Cato Institute Vice President of General Economics and Trade, Scott Lincicome, who said, "The idea of a political solution to an economic non-problem is flawed. There's very little evidence that corporate greed or price gouging is responsible for high grocery or housing prices."
Kansas State University agricultural economist Glynn Tonsor told Newsweek that corporations aren’t’ necessarily gouging prices, they’re often just trying to deal with their own rising expenses.
"The cost of raising the animal, converting it into meat, and getting that meat to consumers is higher than it was," he said.
Lincicome rounded out the argument, adding, "Preventing price increases sounds good, but what do investors and farmers do when they can't guarantee a return on investment or cover their costs? They cut back on investment, leading to reduced supply and even higher prices or outright shortages."
When asked for comment, the Harris campaign provided Fox News Digital with a statement detailing all the support the vice president has received for her economic policy proposals. "In reaction to the proposals, Democratic leaders, economists, and analysts have praised her plans to build up the middle class and ensure that hard working Americans have an opportunity not just to get by, but get ahead."
It provided quotes from media figures like CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer and Democratic lawmakers like Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., praising Harris' economic plans.
"The vice president is proposing tax cuts for lower and middle-class Americans, and she's cracking down on price gouging. Meantime, Trump is proposing more tax cuts for the rich and the very, very rich and praising Elon Musk for firing workers who are on strike," Blitzer said during a recent episode of "CNN Newsroom."
"She's going to be talking today about ways that prescription drug prices are coming down, that incentives will be offered for first-time homebuyers, that there will be an effort to combat price gouging at grocery stores. There's a whole series of specific and concrete middle-class tax benefits and federal actions that would address the everyday economic concerns of 100 million working Americans," Coons said during an appearance on "CNN’s News Central."
Fox News Digital’s Jeffrey Clark and Kristine Parks contributed to this report.
