White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki reiterated to reporters on Monday that Biden and the West Wing view Harris as a valuable asset, despite a heavily-sourced report detailing otherwise.
"The president selected the vice president to serve as his running mate because he felt she was exactly the person he wanted to have by his side to govern the country," Psaki asserted, not long after tweeting that Harris was a "vital partner" to Biden.
Nevertheless, the reporting has sparked conversations about Harris' leadership and the White House's confidence in one who is a heartbeat away from the presidency and, unlike many recent vice presidents, has less experience in Washington than the current head of state.
GOP strategist Brandon Scholz told Sputnik that he feels that there are a number of concerns related to Harris' leadership that may have been glossed over during her bid for the Democratic nomination in the 2020 presidential election.
"I think there are a lot of questions out there that need to be answered in terms of her qualifications to take over," Scholz suggested, while also admitting that there was no question of whether she could take over if a vacancy occurred.
Harris has an extensive track record in holding political office at both a state and national level, but the GOP strategist highlighted that many questions had been raised about Harris' experience of and progress in matters relating to the US-Mexico border, foreign diplomacy, and economic issues - such as the ongoing global supply chain crisis.
The CNN report comes at a time when the public has become curious about the White House's inner workings due to negotiations surrounding the infrastructure bill and the Democrats' $1.75 trillion social spending package, Scholz observed.
Biden notably signed the infrastructure bill into law on Monday, during a rare bipartisan ceremony at the White House. During the event, the US president made a plea to Congress to pass the accompanying bill, which has been significantly slimmed down from its initial $3.5 trillion price tag.
Scholz noted that Harris was absent during Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's bill negotiations with moderate and progressive Democrats.
"There may be some frustration with that absence of her participation, and that may have been why folks decided that they may want to open up a little bit more about what's happening inside the White House," he suggested.
Those concessions translate to less transformation and progress, according to reports, which were promises of the Biden-Harris 2020 campaign. Aides of Harris, according to the new report, claimed that the vice president had been sidelined by the West Wing.
One former, unnamed high-level aide told CNN that the White House was "consistently sending [Harris] out there on losing issues."
As far as lawmaking is concerned, the Biden-Harris administration has accomplished three major pieces of legislation: the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act; the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act; and the recent Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The vice president's absence from talks could, according to Scholz, be due to Biden's need to demonstrate leadership skills, which could leave "little room" for Harris. Or, according to the Republican campaigner, the vice president could be pursuing different pieces of legislation.
Either way, "it's clear that there seems to be less unity on how they proceed," Offered the GOP strategist. "Less unity, than more than just a photo op."
Some aides of the vice president according to the allegations theorized that Biden may be attempting to ice Harris out politically and nix her chances of future presidential aspiration by appointing her to handle unwinnable issues such as North Triangle diplomacy.
While many view Harris as a vice president destined for the Oval Office, a recent USA Today-Suffolk University poll returned a 28% approval rating for Harris' performance to date. As Biden recently hit a new approval low of 38%, the disparity in public opinion shows that the vice president could be losing the Democratic base.
Despite current whispers about Harris and her political future, Scholz insisted that it would not be a surprise if Harris launched a 2024 presidential campaign. At the same time, the Democratic nomination would not automatically go to the vice president, as it is anybody's guess who her challengers would be, the GOP campaign staffer said.
"And then in terms of the Republican side, whoever the Republican nominee is, that question of who is better positioned to win really is very premature at this point," Scholz stated.