(USA Features) Vice President Kamala Harris’ current and former staffers have reported that she is at times abusive and that they suffer from low morale, according to Politico.
The outlet spoke to 22 current and former staffers for its report.
“People are thrown under the bus from the very top, there are short fuses and it’s an abusive environment,” said a person with “direct knowledge” of the activities in her office.
“It’s not a healthy environment and people often feel mistreated,” said another source. “It’s not a place where people feel supported but a place where people feel treated like s**t.”
A lot of the dismay was directed at Harris’ chief of staff Tina Flournoy, who sources said contributed to a “tense and at times dour office atmosphere,” according to Politico.
The outlet reported that two top staffers, Karly Satkowiak and Gabrielle DeFranceschi, left after just six months, which is highly unusual for a new administration.
Both of them left the day before the vice president went to visit the southwestern border — and after Harris had gotten a lot of criticism for shrugging off a visit for months after President Joe Biden tasked her with the border crisis.
In addition, another staffer on Harris’ digital team recently left.
They left the team the day before Harris visited the Southern border, after the vice president received a flood of criticism for downplaying the importance of such a visit.
Another staffer on Harris’ digital team also left recently.
Harris’ spokesperson, Symone Sanders, defended the climate in the office in a series of on-the-record statements.
“We are not making rainbows and bunnies all day. What I hear is that people have hard jobs and I’m like ‘welcome to the club,’” Sanders said.
She also hit back at critics of Flournoy, a black Clinton-era operative who has been in and out of Washington for decades, calling them “cowards.”
“Black women like me would not have the opportunity to work in politics without Tina,” she said.
Another source told Politico that it’s not possible the vice president isn’t aware of the problems.
“She is the most perceptive person on the planet,” the person said. “She might not have first-hand knowledge, but it’s hard to imagine she doesn’t have a sense of what’s going on.”
Sanders blew off the complaints and the recent controversies that have encompassed her VP boss.
“Vice President Harris is focused on the work, not the chatter at the water cooler,” Sanders said.
Another source blamed Harris directly for the angst and poor morale.
“It all starts at the top,” said the official said.