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In Denver, Vice President Kamala Harris Spreads Word About COVID Relief Plan To Colorado Small Business Owners

(CBS4) — Vice President Kamala Harris came to Denver on Tuesday as part of the Biden Administration's efforts to highlight what's in the $1.9 trillion COVID relief plan. Before that she held a virtual chat with the operators of a Fort Lupton vaccine clinic.

Vice President Kamala Harris
Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff take part in a small business listening session at Maria Empanada in Denver on March 16, 2021. (credit: MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Harris and President Joe Biden are in the midst of a series of cross-country trips the White House is calling the "Help is Here" tour. Their goal is to educate the public about different aspects of the American Rescue Plan.

In Denver, Harris held an early afternoon meeting with small businesses along with her husband Doug Emhoff. It took place at Maria Empanada. The business operates a small chain of empanada shops in the Mile High City.

The initial plan for the vice president to visit the Eastern Plains clinic got disrupted because of a mechanical issue with the government plane that flew the vice president to Las Vegas and Los Angeles on Monday, her first day of the tour. A smaller backup plane was sent to fly her to Denver, relegating most of her staff, Secret Service and a small group of reporters to fly on a cavernous cargo plane.

Because of the plane issue, Harris scratched her in-person vaccine clinic plan at Plan De Salud Del Valle Inc. and instead spoke with the clinic's staff over Zoom. She praised their work, making particular note of the clinic's focus on helping minority communities get vaccinated.

"The President and I from the beginning of this have made it one of our highest priorities to make sure that we are taking into account racial disparities, and that we supply folks on the ground with the resources you need so that we have equitable outcomes," she said.

(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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