Top Democrats are questioning Vice President Kamala Harris’ leadership abilities, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton even reportedly has her doubts.
“Members of Congress, Democratic strategists and other major party figures all said she [Harris] had not made herself into a formidable leader,” a Monday article from The New York Times read.
The piece said two Democrats recalled Clinton privately dismissing Harris’ chances of clearing a presidential primary field because she lacked the necessary “political instincts.”
“Two Democrats recalled private conversations in which former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lamented that Ms. Harris could not win because she does not have the political instincts to clear a primary field,” the Times reported.
A spokesman for Clinton pointed to their “strong bond,” although the Times didn’t quote him issuing a specific denial of Clinton’s reported private thoughts.
“They have built and maintained a strong bond. Any other characterization is patently false,” Nick Merrill said on Clinton’s behalf.
He also claimed the two held discussions focused on their separate experiences of being “a woman in power” and, according to the Times, reiterated that Clinton remains “strongly supportive” of her.
The Times article relayed Democrats’ malaise around Harris’ inability to “carve out” a political identity for herself beyond her legacy as many “firsts” – the first African American, Asian American and woman to serve as vice president in U. S. history.
“Even some Democrats whom her own advisers referred reporters to for supportive quotes confided privately that they had lost hope in her,” the article stated.
This is an excerpt only. Read the full story here.
