Growing Rift? Alleged Tensions Escalate Between Biden White House and Harris Campaign

Axios reported Sunday that the White House is experiencing growing tensions and miscommunications with the Harris campaign.

 

Alex Thompson, the national political correspondent, reported that “many senior Biden advisers remain wounded” by the President’s decision to withdraw from his reelection campaign and are still getting used to playing a supporting role in the campaign.

 

A Harris ally told Axios that the White House was “too emotional”.

 

Thompson wrote that the primary issue for some Harris campaigners is that White House staffers “don’t adequately coordinate Biden’s message and schedule to align what’s best with the vice president’s campaign.”

 

Thompson cited conflicts that have occurred recently, such as when President Biden held an impromptu news conference on Friday and Vice President Kamala Harris attended an event in Michigan.

 

 

Biden’s compliments to the Florida Governor were also noteworthy. Ron DeSantis was praised for his handling of recent hurricanes, shortly after Harris had criticized DeSantis’s failure to answer her calls. Thompson reported that a source familiar with the matter said Biden was not briefed about Harris’ remarks before praising DeSantis.

 

A Harris aide told Thompson, “The White House lacks someone in the room who is thinking first and foremost of how things will affect the campaign.”

 

The report stated that despite “sore feeling” among Biden’s aides, most are “actively rooted” for Harris’s victory. There is tension between some White House staffers who are transitioning to Harris’ campaign and others, especially Biden aides, who feel they have been “labeled as disloyal” by Biden’s Team for leaving the White House or even considering it.

 

Thompson wrote that there was awkwardness in Harris’ campaign between those who were Biden’s initial campaign staff, and the Harris allies installed in recent months. Two people with knowledge of the situation told Axios that in the weeks following Harris’ nomination as the Democratic nominee, there were disagreements over whether Biden’s surrogates would remain on TV or if they would be replaced by new faces.

 

 

Andrew Bates, White House deputy Press Secretary, said in a statement that “President Biden has endorsed Vice-President Harris as soon as he left the race. He rejected other approaches that would have divided the party and has repeatedly affirmed his support for her.

 

While ensuring all White House functions were fully staffed, significant changes have been made to ensure the Vice President’s Team has the resources and support they require. This builds on the strong and trusting relationship that has existed between both teams. It was crucial to successfully execute an unprecedented transition from one candidate to another.

 

The Harris campaign has yet to reply to a comment request.