The saga of Kamala Harris’ unlikability
“You and Joe (Biden) are failing on climate!” the heckler called out, to which an irked Harris responded, “I’m speaking,” as the troublemakers were escorted out of the venue by security personnel.
Following the incident, the group put out a statement on Twitter that said, “We profoundly disrupted a speech by United States Vice President Kamala Harris. As we cried out about the tragic deaths in Hawaii and condemned her fossil fuel crimes, Kamala stood there and laughed. Horrendous.”
The group profile on the social media site describes itself as a “Brand-new, youth-led group using direct action to resist fossil fuels.”
A member of the activist group, Jay Waxse, told the Vineyard Gazette that they were there to express disappointment with the government response to the climate crisis. “Biden positions himself as a climate president…but it’s a front,” the protester said.
Kamala Harris: Not Very Popular
That Kamala Harris is being heckled even by fellow liberals underscores how unpopular the vice president is.
While there is an obvious dislike of her among Republicans, apparently, even some Democrats aren’t too keen on Harris.
A recent poll by Fox News shows that only 73% of Democrats approve of her performance in office, down from 77% earlier in the year. Her approval ratings among Independents and Republicans are significantly lower, standing at only 36% and 15%, respectively.
Data from FiveThirtyEight.com, which collects results from political polls, an average 52.3% of voters say that they disapprove of the vice president’s performance, while only 39.7% expressed approval. These numbers are even lower than results of the Fox News poll, that had an average of 43% approval for Harris from all voters.
Another poll from NBC News had the Harris’ net-negative rating at -17, the lowest rating a vice president has ever gotten in the history of the poll.
Harris’ unpopularity has even had some suggesting that Biden take steps to transition the vice president into another role – most notably that of California Senator Diane Feinstein’s, who at 90 years old is still serving her term in the Upper House. Her frequent absences have caused delays in passing key Biden initiatives, and many are concerned about her health.
“President Biden has a problem. So does Vice President Kamala Harris. Sen. Dianne Feinstein is a problem. There’s a solution for all of this. Biden’s problem is Harris. She’s a burden — a drag on his reelection prospects,” wrote Los Angeles Times columnist George Skelton.
Bringing in the Benjamins
However, poor public opinion on Kamala Harris has not stopped her from raking in donations left and right – her schedule is filled with fundraising events and she is expected to outdo President Joe Biden in raising funds for next year’s presidential race.
A recent “grassroots reception” fundraiser, also in Martha’s Vineyard, had attendees fork out anywhere from $50 to $10,000 for a seat at the event, which was hosted by former high-level government officials and Hollywood personalities. Attendees for the event at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School had to donate at least $50 to the Biden Victory Fund in order to gain entry. The vice president also was set to attend two more fundraisers in Massachusetts.
Author Expertise
Tim Ramos has written for various publications, corporations, and organizations – covering everything from finance, politics, travel, entertainment, and sports – in Asia and the U.S. for over 10 years.
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