Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and her running mate Tim Walz have appeared on CNN for their first major in-depth interview since launching their bid for the United States presidency.

Harris in particular has been criticized for avoiding a major media interview since announcing her candidacy late last month.

But on Thursday, she and Walz met with CNN anchor Dana Bash in the coastal city of Savannah for an hour-long interview while she was campaigning in the hotly contested state of Georgia.

Harris quickly sought to establish her credibility as a unifying candidate, attempting to distinguish herself from her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump.

“I believe it’s important to build consensus and find a common ground of understanding of where we can actually solve problems,” Harris said as she sat across from Bash at Kim’s Cafe, a family-run restaurant in Savannah.

Bash, however, pressed Harris about the sweeping changes she has made to her policy platform since first running for president in 2020, and questioned Walz about the Minnesota governor’s apparent exaggerations in public statements about his military record.

Here are the key takeaways from Harris’ most in-depth interview yet as a presidential candidate.

Harris outlines plans for day one

Historically, Harris has a short window of time before the November 5 election to win over voters.

She did not take over the Democratic ticket until July 21, when incumbent President Joe Biden withdrew from the race. Harris currently serves as Biden’s vice president.

Early in Thursday’s interview, Bash asked Harris about her plans for her first day in office, if she is elected in November.

Harris responded by reiterating what she sees as the top priority for her presidency: strengthening the middle class.

Her government, she said, would “do what we can to support and strengthen the middle class.”

She and Walz then gave a nod to their signature policy proposals, including a child benefit, lower grocery costs and more construction to address the country’s housing shortage. Harris also said she would strike a different tone than Trump in the White House.

“When I look at the aspirations, the goals and the ambitions of the American people, I think they are ready for a new path forward,” she said.

“I think unfortunately over the last decade we’ve had someone in the former president who has really pushed an agenda and an environment that undermines the strength and the character of who we are as Americans.”

Later, when asked about Trump’s comments questioning her racial identity, Harris brushed off his remarks: “Same old tired playbook. Next question, please.”

Harris describes how he learned of Biden’s withdrawal

Bash asked Harris to describe how she learned in July, just weeks before the Democratic National Convention, that Biden was dropping out of the presidential race.

“It was Sunday,” Harris explained. “My family was staying with us, including my baby nieces, and we had just had pancakes.”

“We were sitting there doing some research and the phone rang, and it was Joe Biden. And he told me what he had decided to do,” Harris continued.

“I asked him, ‘Are you sure?’ And he said yes. And that’s how I found out.”

On July 21, Biden announced the news to the American public with a statement on his social media accounts. “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country that I leave office,” he wrote.

But the decision came after Biden’s fumbling performance in the June 28 presidential debate against Trump left many in the Democratic Party concerned about the 81-year-old’s age and his ability to handle the pressures of the presidency.

Harris, however, had consistently defended Biden’s leadership qualities. Bash asked Harris if she had any regrets about her time in Biden’s White House.

“Not at all. I served with President Biden for almost four years, and I can tell you it’s one of the greatest honors of my career, truly,” Harris said. She called Biden’s presidency “transformative” before taking another dig at Trump.

Biden, she said, “has the intelligence, the dedication and the judgment and the spirit that I think the American people rightly deserve in their president. In contrast, the former president has none of those things.”

Harris hints at Republican cabinet member

Thursday’s CNN interview came exactly a week after the Democratic National Convention concluded, when Harris formally accepted his party’s nomination for president.

In her acceptance speech, Harris promised to be a “president for all Americans.”

On Thursday’s broadcast, she took that pledge a step further. When Bash asked if she would consider appointing a Republican to her Cabinet staff — a group of top presidential advisers — Harris immediately said yes.

“I’ve spent my career inviting diversity of opinion. I think it’s important to have people at the table when important decisions are being made who have different perspectives and experiences,” Harris explained.

“And I think it would be to the benefit of the American public to have a Republican in my Cabinet.”

Neither of the last two administrations — Trump’s and Biden’s — has appointed cabinet members from the opposing party. The last president to do so was Democrat Barack Obama, who appointed Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, a Republican.

Bash tried to persuade Harris to reveal whether she had a specific person in mind for her cabinet.

“Nobody in particular in mind,” Harris replied. “I’ve got 68 days left in this election, so I’m not putting the cart before the horse.”

Bash questions Harris about going back

Thursday’s interview was largely uneventful, with Harris repeating much of what she said during the campaign.

But Bash focused primarily on the changes Harris has made to her policies since becoming vice president.

For example, when Harris was campaigning for president in 2020, she supported Medicare for All legislation championed by progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders. She has since backed away from that stance.

And in 2019, she told a CNN town hall meeting that she supported a “Green New Deal” that would include more aggressive measures to combat climate change. “There’s no question that I support banning fracking,” she said at the time.

After Harris joined Biden as his running mate in 2020, she quickly withdrew from that position, something she emphasized in Thursday’s interview with Bash.

“I made that clear during the 2020 debate, that I would not ban fracking,” she said, before adding: “As president, I will not ban fracking.”

To avoid accusations that she had changed her position, Harris stressed that she still sees climate change as a major threat, one that can be addressed without a ban on fracking.

“Let’s be clear: my values ​​have not changed. I believe it is very important that we take seriously what we need to do to protect ourselves from what is a clear climate crisis,” Harris said.

“What I’ve seen is that we can grow and create a thriving clean energy economy without banning fracking.”

Fracking is part of the economy in swing states like Pennsylvania and Ohio, where Trump has used Harris’s 2019 comments as a point of attack. But critics have pointed out that fracking carries serious risks, including the potential to contaminate groundwater used for drinking water.

Still, Harris repeatedly vowed on Thursday that she would not ban fracking if elected president.

“In 2020, I made it very clear where I stand,” she said. “I kept my word, and I will keep my word.”

Bash asks Harris about Gaza policy

Thursday’s interview is part of the final countdown before the election, with early voting beginning as early as September in some states.

The presidential election is expected to be decided by a narrow majority, with Trump and Harris locked in a neck-and-neck race.

However, a Reuters-Ipsos poll on Thursday showed Harris had gained slightly more support, with 45 percent of the vote to Trump’s 41 percent.

Still, Bash raised the idea that Harris’ position on Israel’s war in Gaza could cost her votes, especially among progressives in her party.

Harris has largely followed Biden’s lead and pledged unconditional support for Israel despite the rising death toll in Gaza and ongoing concerns about human rights abuses.

Bash asked Harris if she would differentiate herself from Biden: Would she do anything differently?

“Let me be very clear: I am unequivocal and unwavering in my commitment to the defense of Israel and its ability to defend itself,” Harris said, echoing a sentiment she also expressed on stage at the Democratic National Convention.

But she offered an addendum: “How it happens matters. Far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed.”

Harris closed by saying, “We have to make a deal,” a reference to ongoing ceasefire negotiations that have so far remained elusive.

After recording the CNN interview, Harris headed to her final stop on her Georgia campaign tour in August: a rally at Enmarket Arena in Savannah.

Her speech was briefly interrupted by pro-Palestinian demonstrators.