Video shows Kamala Harris ad during Democratic primary race in 2019 | Fact check
The claim: Video shows new Harris presidential campaign ad
A July 21 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) includes a video advertisement comparing Vice President Kamala Harris to former President Donald Trump. It puts forth a series of comparisons, including, "She shut down for-procit colleges that swindled Americans. He was a for-profit college."
“Wow,” reads the start of the caption. “The Harris team are out of the blocks in lightening (sic) quick time with this superb ad.”
The post was liked more than 50 times in a day. Other versions of the claim spread widely on X, formerly Twitter.
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Our rating: False
The advertisement isn't new. Harris posted it on social media in 2019 during the Democratic primary race ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
Ad called Harris the 'anti-Trump' ahead of 2020 election
The social media posts presenting this ad as new came hours after President Joe Biden announced July 21 that he was dropping out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsed Harris as the Democratic nominee. Harris filed as a presidential candidate with the Federal Election Commission and sent her first fundraising text that same day, USA TODAY reported.
But the video shown in the posts isn’t from her presidential campaign.
Harris posted the video to her X account on Nov. 20, 2019, while she was still in the running to be the Democratic presidential nominee in the 2020 election.
The advertisement compares Trump’s presidential and personal conduct to Harris' record as a prosecutor.
“This is Trump,” the video’s narrator said in closing. “And in every possible way, this is the anti-Trump. So if that’s what you’re looking for in your next president, there’s really only one – Kamala.”
Fact check: Video lacks context about Harris' debate criticism of Biden's record on race
Harris dropped out of the race less than two weeks later, saying her campaign “simply doesn’t have the financial resources we need to continue.”
USA TODAY has debunked an array of claims about Harris, including false assertions that she was “leaving (the) White House” in May, that she resigned as vice president in October 2022 and that she said Biden would “do whatever the Chinese tell you” during a June 2019 debate.
USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Newschecker also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources:
Kamala Harris, Nov. 20, 2019, X post
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim video shows Kamala Harris 2024 campaign ad | Fact check