![]() ![]() ![]() “Especially in the communications end of operation.” Barabak, a veteran Los Angeles Times political reporter, of Harris’ time as California attorney general. “I didn’t cover her closely in Sacramento, but I know she did churn through staff,” said Mark Z. And, reports of issues within Harris’ staff are nothing new.Īs far back as July, Politico reported that Harris’ staff was “experiencing low morale, porous lines of communication and diminished trust among aides and senior officials.” (The publication laid much of the blame for those problems at the feet of Harris’ chief of staff, Tina Flournoy.)Īnd, Harris struggling with retaining staff is, well, not a new thing. When a politician is feeling stress or believes they are being misused, they almost always exert pressure downstream of them – on their staffs. And those around h er remain wary of even hinting at future political ambitions, with Biden’s team highly attuned to signs of disloyalty, particularly from the vice president.” The vice president herself has told several confidants she feels constrained in what she’s able to do politically. Many in the vice president’s circle fume that she’s not being adequately prepared or positioned, and instead is being sidelined. Interviews with nearly three dozen former and current Harris aides, administration officials, Democratic operatives, donors and outside advisers – who spoke extensively to CNN – reveal a complex reality inside the White House. “Worn out by what they see as entrenched dysfunction and lack of focus, key West Wing aides have largely thrown up their hands at Vice President Kamala Harris and her staff – deciding there simply isn’t time to deal with them right now, especially at a moment when President Joe Biden faces quickly multiplying legislative and political concerns. We have some window into that via reporting by my CNN colleagues Edward Isaac Dovere and Jasmine Wright last month. There are those who dispute even the premise of the question, insisting that Harris is being judged by an unfair standard because of her history-making status as the first woman, first African American and first Asian American to hold the vice presidency.īut, staff departures at such a senior level this soon into a term would provoke questions no matter who was in the vice president’s office because, well, they are odd and not typical. THE POINT - NOW ON YOUTUBE! In each episode of his weekly YouTube show, Chris Cillizza will delve a little deeper into the surreal world of politics. While the question is simple, the answer – or answers – are not. The decisions by Etienne and Sanders to head for the exits then raises a simple question: What is happening in Harris world? One departure might be explained away by extenuating circumstances. Top advisers to a vice president don’t just randomly leave less than a year into a term. If you believe that, well, you haven’t been paying attention. “It’s natural for staffers who’ve thrown their heart and soul into a job to be ready to move on after a few years,” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki of Sanders’ departure on Thursday. Harris allies quickly moved to explain both of these departures away as long-planned and not part of any sort of problem within the Veep’s office. Then, on Wednesday night, CNN reported that Symone Sanders, Harris’ chief spokesperson and a senior adviser, is also headed out the door. ![]() In the space of the last two weeks, Vice President Kamala Harris has lost two of her senior aides.įirst, just before Thanksgiving, news broke that Ashley Etienne, Harris’ communications director, would be leaving the vice president’s office. ![]()
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