Kamala Harris in The Hill 2020s

On Gun Control: We cannot tolerate society with our babies being slaughtered

Harris has sought to highlight her positions on gun control while carving out an identity as a hard-core critic of the National Rifle Association. This week, she was quick to highlight an attack by the NRA's chief at the Conservative Political Action Conference. "I am not going to be silenced by attacks from the NRA or anyone else," she wrote on Twitter, minutes after NRA chief Wayne LaPierre labeled Harris and other Democrats as "new European-style socialists bearing down upon us."

Last week, after the nation began another discussion on gun control following the shooting at a Florida high school, Harris immediately weighed in on MSNBC.

"We cannot tolerate a society and live in a country with any level of pride when our babies are being slaughtered," she said in a video that quickly went viral.

On Immigration: No border wall in any comprehensive bill

"While this bill would put Dreamers on a pathway toward citizenship, the appropriation of $25 billion for a border wall is a waste of taxpayer money," she said. "A wall will not secure our border and I remain concerned those billions of dollars may also be used to implement this Administration's anti-immigrant agenda--one that targets California and its residents."

Those close to Harris maintain that Harris has felt passionately for years about [immigration issues]. In particular, they say protecting dreamers has been her top priority since she was elected to the Senate.