*CNN reporters Edward-Isaac Dovere and Jasmine Wright have dropped a bombshell exposé about the alleged dysfunction permeating in Vice President Kamala Harris’ office
The lengthy CNN piece features testimony from “nearly three dozen former and current Harris aides, administration officials, Democratic operatives, donors and outside advisers,” many of whom shed light on Harris’ growing tensions with President Joe Biden.
“It’s hard to miss the specific energy that the White House brings to defend a white man, knowing that Kamala Harris has spent almost a year taking a lot of the hits that the West Wing didn’t want to take themselves,” a former Harris aide told CNN.
Here’s more from the New York Post:
The ex-staffer was referring to the Biden administration springing to defend Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg for taking paternity leave amid the global supply chain crisis. Buttigieg is considered a potential challenger to Harris for the Democratic presidential nomination either in 2024 or 2028. Despite their public show of unity, Biden and his right-hand woman have a dysfunctional relationship that has reached an “exhausted stalemate,” according the network.
The outlet also reported that Harris did not attend most of the meetings Biden held with members of Congress as he attempted to secure passage of the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. At one point on Nov. 5, with the White House attempting to lock down crucial votes, Harris visited a NASA facility in suburban Maryland.
Inside the frustrating and dysfunctional start to Kamala Harris’ vice presidency https://t.co/GeZuPKjrRI
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) November 14, 2021
On Sunday, CNN published the behind-the-scenes exposé on Harris’, in which insiders alleged that the Biden and Harris teams continue to be at odds over tasks assigned to the vice president that put her in “no-win political situation[s]”. According to the report, the West Wing has been especially annoyed by her handling of the border issue, a job she did not want to be tasked with, per the report.
Eleni Kounalakis, the lieutenant governor of California and a longtime friend of Harris, confirmed that Biden and Harris are often at odds over her job duties.
“It is natural that those of us who know her know how much more helpful she can be than she is currently being asked to be,” she told CNN. “That’s where the frustration is coming from.”
In June, Politico reported that the VP’s office was “chaotic” with a “tense and at times dour” atmosphere.“
“People are thrown under the bus from the very top, there are short fuses and it’s an abusive environment,” one source told the outlet at the time. “It’s not a healthy environment and people often feel mistreated. It’s not a place where people feel supported but a place where people feel treated like s—.”
For anyone who needs to hear it. @VP is not only a vital partner to @POTUS but a bold leader who has taken on key, important challenges facing the country—from voting rights to addressing root causes of migration to expanding broadband.
— Jen Psaki (@PressSec) November 15, 2021
The CNN report has prompted several of Harris’ supporters to take to social media to defend her. Harris’ spokeswoman Symone Sanders was quick to dismiss the report.
“It is unfortunate that after a productive trip to France in which we reaffirmed our relationship with America’s oldest ally and demonstrated US leadership on the world stage, and following passage of a historic, bipartisan infrastructure bill that will create jobs and strengthen our communities, some in the media are focused on gossip — not on the results that the president and the vice president have delivered,” Sanders said.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki chimed in on Twitter, writing: “For anyone who needs to hear it. @VP is not only a vital partner to @POTUS but a bold leader who has taken on key, important challenges facing the country—from voting rights to addressing root causes of migration to expanding broadband.”
You can read the full CNN report here.
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