New ad claims Harris can fight inflation and housing shortages by building 3 million homes

Vice President Kamala Harris is making waves with a bold new plan to tackle two of the country's most pressing problems: inflation and the housing crisis. In a recently released one-minute ad, Harris unveils her ambitious plan to build three million new homes within four years. She says the strategy could curb rising costs while easing the financial burden on millions of Americans.

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The ad, currently running in key swing states like Arizona and Nevada, is heavily inspired by Harris' life. She tells how she grew up in a rented apartment while her mother saved for 10 years to buy a house. It's a personal story that's meant to appeal to voters feeling the pinch of rising housing costs.

“Vice President Harris understands the problems facing Americans today,” said Dan Kanninen, swing state director for Harris' campaign. “Her plan is about more than just building homes; it's about ending the housing shortage and stopping the corporate landlords and Wall Street banks who charge extortionate rents.”

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Harris' plan goes far beyond increasing the housing supply. She promises up to $25,000 in assistance to first-time buyers, a boon that could provide critical relief to those trying to get their foot in the door. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that housing costs rose 5.1 percent last year, outpacing the general inflation rate of 2.9 percent.

The Harris campaign is working hard to get the issue across to voters. This week, she hosted 20 events across the country focused exclusively on housing. Her campaign also touted tax breaks for homebuilders focused on first-time buyers and expanded incentives for rental housing companies. Harris would also double the $40 billion available to encourage local governments to lift zoning restrictions on new construction.

While Harris has turned her attention to housing, her Republican counterpart Donald Trump has taken a different direction. Trump, once a major real estate developer himself, has identified the housing shortage that has persisted throughout his presidency as a priority issue, even going so far as to suggest that if illegal immigration were stopped, housing could become more affordable.

In a June speech in Wisconsin, Trump said, “I will also stop inflation by preventing invasion and rapidly reducing housing costs.” His campaign team has made several proposals to open more federal lands for housing construction and to hold a competition to create up to 10 new cities.

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Trump, however, is skeptical of Harris' plan and wonders how she will finance it. “She has no idea how she's going to pay $25,000 to every first-time home buyer, including illegal immigrants,” Trump said at a rally in Pennsylvania last week, suggesting – without evidence – that Harris's policy would benefit undocumented immigrants.

Undeterred, Harris' campaign continued to hold events promoting affordable housing in key swing states, including Pennsylvania, Arizona, Nevada and North Carolina. As the campaign heats up, Harris is banking on her housing plan resonating with voters who are clamoring for a solution to the nation's growing housing crisis.

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