As San Francisco’s district attorney from 2004 to 2011, Kamala Harris implemented the “Back on Track” program, aimed at helping felons expunge their convictions and secure employment.
However, it was later revealed that some participants were illegal immigrants, which Harris initially claimed she was unaware of until a violent incident involving an illegal immigrant highlighted the issue.
Following this, she acknowledged the program’s design flaw and stated it would be corrected to prevent undocumented individuals from participating.
“I believe we fixed it,” Harris said at the time. “So moving forward, it is about making sure that no one enters Back on Track if they cannot hold legal employment.”
“The whole point of the program,” Harris said, “is that these people would be able to obtain and hold down lawful employment, and if they’re undocumented, they probably would not be able to do that, so it would go against the very spirit of the program” to continue enrolling them.
Throughout her political career, Harris has consistently opposed federal immigration enforcement, earning a low rating from NumbersUSA and advocating for the decriminalization of unlawful border crossings.
As Vice President, she has been tasked with addressing the root causes of migration from Central America, amidst a significant increase in illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Harris is now positioned as the presumptive Democratic nominee for the presidency following President Biden’s decision not to seek re-election.
