Kamala Harris is not the ‘progressive prosecutor’ you’re looking for

She’s running!

While every Democrat in the 2020 race has a similar platform, some candidates have separated themselves with a theme.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., is focused on financial reform, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has become a face of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements. And Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is attempting to be the Democrat who can win back the working class.

So, what’s Sen. Kamala Harris’, D-Calif., theme? Well, if her background has taught us anything, it has to be criminal justice.

During an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Harris told George Stephanopoulos and Robin Roberts about her extensive background as a crime fighter.

“I am a career prosecutor as you said,” Harris said. “My entire career has been focused on keeping people safe. It is probably one of the things that motivates me more than anything else. And when I look at this moment in time, I know that the American people deserve somebody who’s going to fight for them, who’s going to see them, who will hear them, who will care about them, who will be concerned about their experience, and put them in front of self interest.”

But taking a look back at Harris’ history, particularly as the California attorney general and San Francisco district attorney, you’ll find an interesting trend.

In 2010, a judge found that then-San Francisco District Attorney Harris’ office violated defendants’ rights by hiding damaging information about a police drug lab technician and was indifferent to demands that it account for its failings. It resulted in over 600 drug cases being dismissed.

However, Harris’ worst indiscretion was her unwillingness to increase government accountability, especially in the wake of multiple fatal shootings of black men across the nation.

During her tenure as California attorney general, her office opposed legislation requiring her office to independently investigate fatal police shootings. She didn’t even endorse a statewide mandate of police body cameras.

While she can defend her decisions, it will be hard for her to argue she’s a “progressive prosecutor.”