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Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand attempted to turn her previous conservative views on immigration into a strength on Tuesday, telling an audience that her admission that those views were wrong shows her ability to admit her mistakes.
Gillibrand held conservative views on immigration as a member of the House who represented a district in upstate New York.
“When I was a member of Congress from upstate New York, I was really focused on the priorities of my district. When I became senator of the entire state, I recognized that some of my views really did need to change,” Gillibrand said. “They were not thoughtful enough and didn’t care enough about people outside of the original upstate New York district that I represented. So, I learned.”
She added:
“And I think for people who aspire to be president, I think it’s really important that you’re able to admit when you’re wrong and that you’re able to grow and learn and listen and be better, and be stronger. That is something that Donald Trump is unwilling to do. He is unwilling to listen, he is unwilling to admit when he’s wrong. He’s actually incapable of it. And I think it’s one of the reasons why he is such a cowardly president.”
Gillibrand went on to say that she believes people should treat each other how they would like to be treated and was “ashamed” that she didn’t do that in the House.
“I did not do that as a House member, I was ashamed,” she said. “And so now as a senator for 10 years, I know I’m in the right place.”
Gillibrand ran and won a House seat around Albany, New York, in 2006 by attacking her Republican opponent from the right on immigration and guns, calling securing the border “a national security priority” and touting an A-rating from the National Rifle Association.
Gillibrand’s conservative record is one of the key criticisms her nascent candidacy receives from the left, but it shows how the 2020 candidate’s early strategy is to face up to questions about her record, not run away from them, believing that embracing her story and evolution on issues like guns and immigration could win plaudits from caucus goers in Iowa and convince them that she could win a general election against Trump by appealing to a spectrum of voters.
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