Evolving Perspectives on Criminal Justice

When then-Sen. Kamala Harris ran for president in the 2020 election, progressive activists quickly labeled her a “cop,” a reference to her time as the district attorney of San Francisco. Activists argued that being a D.A. was an inherently pro-police, pro-prisons job — a charge Harris hasn’t always shied away from in her political career. To get a sense of how Harris’ past has shaped the politician she’s become, Max and Josie examine her time as the San Francisco D.A., and later the attorney general of California. They explore key moments in her career, like when she opted not to seek the death penalty against a man who killed a police officer, to get a sense of her instincts and thinking about criminal justice more broadly. They come out the other side of the conversation with something hard to come by in politics these days: nuance.