CNBC
"Kamala Harris aide leaves vice president’s office for Capitol Hill on heels of other departures"
Brian Schwartz @SCHWARTZBCNBC
PUBLISHED TUE, JAN 4 2022
KEY POINTS
* The departure of a third aide to Vice President Kamala Harris comes amid reports of tension and dysfunction in her office.
* Vincent Evans, her deputy director of public engagement and intergovernmental affairs, is leaving for a top job at the Congressional Black Caucus.
* A person familiar with Evans’ departure says he is leaving Harris’ office on great terms, and that the move has nothing to do with the other departures.
Another key aide is leaving Vice President Kamala Harris’ office following the departure of two other advisors.
Vincent Evans, Harris’ deputy director of public engagement and intergovernmental affairs, has taken a top job at the Congressional Black Caucus, he said in a statement provided to CNBC.
The CBC is led by Black lawmakers who advocate for issues important to minority communities across the country.
The group is chaired by Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio.
“I am deeply honored to be named the executive director of the Congressional Black Caucus,” Evans said in the statement.
“I started my career in Washington working for a member of the CBC, so I know firsthand the tremendous leadership and impact this caucus has in Congress and across the country.”
Evans was a political director for Harris during the transition, and held the same post while she was a nominee for vice president during the later stages of the run-up to the 2020 election, according to his LinkedIn profile.
A person familiar with Evans’ departure says he is leaving on great terms with the vice president, and that he plans to maintain his close relationship with her.
The move, this person added, has nothing to do with the other recent departures.
Harris, according to this person, supports Evans’ decision.
The person declined to be named in order to speak freely about the job change.
Symone Sanders, who was chief spokesperson for Harris, recently announced her departure from the vice president’s office, calling it an “honor of a lifetime” to work there.
Ashley Etienne, the former communications director, left the office last month.
Beatty, the CBC chair, praised Evans, saying, “As a leader for effective change, Vincent will help the CBC reach greater heights and make substantive advances in 2022."
"Vincent knows the importance of developing critical relationships when it comes to public engagement, along with a variety of policy and leadership skills.”
Evans’ departure comes after multiple reports describing tension and dysfunction within the vice president’s office.
CNBC reported on Harris’ allies taking aim at her chief of staff, Tina Flournoy, for her handling of the vice president and her team.
CNN previously reported on frustrations directed toward Harris from officials within the West Wing of the White House.
The White House and Harris’ team have previously played down the negative reports.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki called Harris in November a “vital partner” to President Joe Biden and a “bold leader who has taken on key, important challenges facing the country — from voting rights to addressing root causes of migration to expanding broadband.”
Data also provided by Reuters
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/04/kamala- ... tures.html
KAMALA HARRIS
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
REUTERS
"Biden, Harris urge Americans to protect democracy on Capitol attack anniversary"
By Jeff Mason and Alexandra Alper
January 6, 2022
WASHINGTON, Jan 6 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden used the first anniversary of the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol on Thursday to urge Americans to protect the country's fragile democracy by standing up for the right to vote.
Biden, in remarks from the Capitol's National Statuary Hall, lambasted former President Donald Trump for spreading mistruths that fueled the deadly attack by the Republican's supporters two weeks before Biden's inauguration in 2021.
Speaking 10 months before the November midterm elections that could give control of one or both houses of Congress to Republicans, Biden, a Democrat, warned that the danger on display a year ago had not gone away.
"The lies that drove the anger and madness we saw in this place, they have not abated."
"So we have to be firm, resolute and unyielding in our defense of the right to vote and to have that vote counted," Biden said from the U.S. Capitol, where a mob of Trump's supporters attempted to overturn the 2020 election results.
"So now let's step up, write the next chapter in American history, where January 6th marks not the end of democracy but the beginning of a renaissance of liberty and fair play," Biden said.
In remarks delivered before Biden spoke, Vice President Kamala Harris also cast a spotlight on Trump supporters' efforts to subvert democracy, calling on Congress to pass voting rights legislation and on Americans to participate.
"We cannot let our future be decided by those bent on silencing our voices, overturning our votes and peddling lies and misinformation by some radical faction that may be newly resurgent but whose roots run old," Harris said.
"The fragility of democracy is this: that if we are not vigilant, if we do not defend it, democracy simply will not stand; it will falter and fail."
Biden and Harris plan to travel to Georgia on Tuesday to deliver remarks about voting rights.
Democrats say federal election reform is necessary to counter a wave of voting restrictions adopted last year by Republican-led states.
The laws were inspired by Trump's false claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election, which he lost to Biden by a substantial margin.
Americans vote in lower numbers than in many other developed nations, historical data shows, with eligible turnout during presidential elections hovering near 60% for much of the past century.
Numbers spiked in the 2020 election to nearly 67%.
Democrats hope that greater voter turnout will favor them, especially as demographic shifts shrink the white majority in the country of roughly 330 million people.
Democrats' efforts to pass voting rights legislation in Congress appeared in jeopardy this week, as centrist Democratic Senator Joe Manchin said he had little interest in a strategy that would allow the party to bypass Republican opposition.
Biden and his advisers had shied away from talking directly about Trump during the Democrat's first year in office, but Thursday marked a turnaround.
Biden attacked the "defeated" former president's "bruised ego" and his followers' refusal to accept reality.
"You can’t love your country only when you win."
"You can't obey the law only when it's convenient."
"You can't be patriotic when you embrace and enable lies," he said.
"Those who stormed this Capitol and those who instigated and incited and those who called on them to do so held a dagger at the throat of America - at American democracy."
"Now it’s up to all of us - to 'We the People' - to stand for the rule of law, to preserve the flame of democracy, to keep the promise of America alive."
Reporting by Jeff Mason, Nandita Bose and Alex Alper; Editing by Mary Milliken, Heather Timmons, Jonathan Oatis and Raju Gopalakrishnan
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/biden- ... 022-01-06/
"Biden, Harris urge Americans to protect democracy on Capitol attack anniversary"
By Jeff Mason and Alexandra Alper
January 6, 2022
WASHINGTON, Jan 6 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden used the first anniversary of the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol on Thursday to urge Americans to protect the country's fragile democracy by standing up for the right to vote.
Biden, in remarks from the Capitol's National Statuary Hall, lambasted former President Donald Trump for spreading mistruths that fueled the deadly attack by the Republican's supporters two weeks before Biden's inauguration in 2021.
Speaking 10 months before the November midterm elections that could give control of one or both houses of Congress to Republicans, Biden, a Democrat, warned that the danger on display a year ago had not gone away.
"The lies that drove the anger and madness we saw in this place, they have not abated."
"So we have to be firm, resolute and unyielding in our defense of the right to vote and to have that vote counted," Biden said from the U.S. Capitol, where a mob of Trump's supporters attempted to overturn the 2020 election results.
"So now let's step up, write the next chapter in American history, where January 6th marks not the end of democracy but the beginning of a renaissance of liberty and fair play," Biden said.
In remarks delivered before Biden spoke, Vice President Kamala Harris also cast a spotlight on Trump supporters' efforts to subvert democracy, calling on Congress to pass voting rights legislation and on Americans to participate.
"We cannot let our future be decided by those bent on silencing our voices, overturning our votes and peddling lies and misinformation by some radical faction that may be newly resurgent but whose roots run old," Harris said.
"The fragility of democracy is this: that if we are not vigilant, if we do not defend it, democracy simply will not stand; it will falter and fail."
Biden and Harris plan to travel to Georgia on Tuesday to deliver remarks about voting rights.
Democrats say federal election reform is necessary to counter a wave of voting restrictions adopted last year by Republican-led states.
The laws were inspired by Trump's false claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election, which he lost to Biden by a substantial margin.
Americans vote in lower numbers than in many other developed nations, historical data shows, with eligible turnout during presidential elections hovering near 60% for much of the past century.
Numbers spiked in the 2020 election to nearly 67%.
Democrats hope that greater voter turnout will favor them, especially as demographic shifts shrink the white majority in the country of roughly 330 million people.
Democrats' efforts to pass voting rights legislation in Congress appeared in jeopardy this week, as centrist Democratic Senator Joe Manchin said he had little interest in a strategy that would allow the party to bypass Republican opposition.
Biden and his advisers had shied away from talking directly about Trump during the Democrat's first year in office, but Thursday marked a turnaround.
Biden attacked the "defeated" former president's "bruised ego" and his followers' refusal to accept reality.
"You can’t love your country only when you win."
"You can't obey the law only when it's convenient."
"You can't be patriotic when you embrace and enable lies," he said.
"Those who stormed this Capitol and those who instigated and incited and those who called on them to do so held a dagger at the throat of America - at American democracy."
"Now it’s up to all of us - to 'We the People' - to stand for the rule of law, to preserve the flame of democracy, to keep the promise of America alive."
Reporting by Jeff Mason, Nandita Bose and Alex Alper; Editing by Mary Milliken, Heather Timmons, Jonathan Oatis and Raju Gopalakrishnan
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/biden- ... 022-01-06/
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
Remarks by Vice President Harris on Protecting the Right to Vote
JANUARY 11, 2022
Atlanta University Center Consortium Atlanta, Georgia
4:06 P.M. EST
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon, Atlanta.
(Applause.)
Good afternoon.
Jillian, thank you for that beautiful introduction and for your leadership.
I can’t wait to see you — what you do next.
Thank you.
So, last week, one year —
Yes, please do sit.
(Laughter.)
Last week, one year after a violent mob breached the United States Capitol, the President of the United States and I spoke from its hallowed halls and we made clear: We swore to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.
And we will.
We will fight.
(Applause.)
We will fight to safeguard our democracy.
We will fight to secure our most fundamental freedom: the freedom to vote.
And that is why we have come to Atlanta today — to the cradle of the Civil Rights Movement; to the district that was represented by the great Congressman John Lewis — (applause) — on the eve of the birthday of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
(Applause.)
More than 55 years ago, men, women, and children marched from Selma to Montgomery to demand the ballot.
And when they arrived at the State Capitol in Alabama, Dr. King decried what he called “normalcy” — the normalcy, the complacency that was denying people the freedom to vote.
The only normalcy anyone should accept, Dr. King said, is the “normalcy of justice.”
And his words resonate today.
Over the past few years, we have seen so many anti-voter laws that there is a danger of becoming accustomed to these laws, a danger of adjusting to these laws as though they are normal, a danger of being complacent, complicit.
Anti-voter laws are not new in our nation, but we must not be deceived into thinking they are normal.
We must not be deceived into thinking a law that makes it more difficult for students to vote is normal.
We must not be deceived into thinking a law that makes it illegal to help a voter with a disability vote by mail is normal.
(Applause.)
There is nothing normal about a law that makes it illegal to pass out water or food to people standing in long voting lines.
(Applause.)
And I have met with voters in Georgia.
I have heard your outrage about the anti-voter law here and how many voters will likely be kept from voting.
And Georgia is not alone.
Across our nation, anti-voter laws could make it more difficult for as many as 55 million Americans to vote.
That is one out of six people in our country.
And the proponents of these laws are not only putting in place obstacles to the ballot box, they are also working to interfere with our elections to get the outcomes they want and to discredit those they don’t.
That is not how a democracy should work.
My fellow Americans: Do not succumb to those who would dismiss this assault on voting rights as an unfounded threat — who would wave this off as a partisan game.
The assault on our freedom to vote will be felt by every American, in every community, in every political party.
And if we stand idly by, our entire nation will pay the price for generations to come.
As Dr. King said, “The battle is in our hands.”
And today, the battle is in the hands of the leaders of the American people, those in particular that the American people sent to the United States Senate.
Two landmark bills sit before the United States Senate: the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act.
(Applause.)
And these two bills represent the first real opportunity to secure the freedom to vote since the United States Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act nearly a decade ago.
We do not know when we will have this opportunity again.
Senate Republicans have exploited arcane rules to block these bills.
And let us be clear: The Constitution of the United States gives the Congress the power to pass legislation.
And nowhere — nowhere — does the Constitution give a minority the right to unilaterally block legislation.
(Applause.)
The American people have waited long enough.
The Senate must act.
And the bottom line is this: Years from now, our children and our grandchildren, they will ask us about this moment.
They will look back on this time, and they will ask us not about how we felt — they will ask us what did we do.
We cannot tell them that we let a Senate rule stand in the way of our most fundamental freedom.
Instead, let us tell them that we stood together as people of conscience and courage.
Let us tell them we acted with the urgency that this moment demands.
And let us tell them we secured the freedom to vote, that we ensured free and fair elections, and we safeguarded our democracy for them and their children.
And now, my fellow Americans, it is now my honor to introduce a leader who is unwavering in his commitment to defend our democracy and ensure the ballot prevails: the President of the United States of America, Joe Biden.
(Applause.)
END 4:14 P.M. EST
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-roo ... t-to-vote/
JANUARY 11, 2022
Atlanta University Center Consortium Atlanta, Georgia
4:06 P.M. EST
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon, Atlanta.
(Applause.)
Good afternoon.
Jillian, thank you for that beautiful introduction and for your leadership.
I can’t wait to see you — what you do next.
Thank you.
So, last week, one year —
Yes, please do sit.
(Laughter.)
Last week, one year after a violent mob breached the United States Capitol, the President of the United States and I spoke from its hallowed halls and we made clear: We swore to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.
And we will.
We will fight.
(Applause.)
We will fight to safeguard our democracy.
We will fight to secure our most fundamental freedom: the freedom to vote.
And that is why we have come to Atlanta today — to the cradle of the Civil Rights Movement; to the district that was represented by the great Congressman John Lewis — (applause) — on the eve of the birthday of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
(Applause.)
More than 55 years ago, men, women, and children marched from Selma to Montgomery to demand the ballot.
And when they arrived at the State Capitol in Alabama, Dr. King decried what he called “normalcy” — the normalcy, the complacency that was denying people the freedom to vote.
The only normalcy anyone should accept, Dr. King said, is the “normalcy of justice.”
And his words resonate today.
Over the past few years, we have seen so many anti-voter laws that there is a danger of becoming accustomed to these laws, a danger of adjusting to these laws as though they are normal, a danger of being complacent, complicit.
Anti-voter laws are not new in our nation, but we must not be deceived into thinking they are normal.
We must not be deceived into thinking a law that makes it more difficult for students to vote is normal.
We must not be deceived into thinking a law that makes it illegal to help a voter with a disability vote by mail is normal.
(Applause.)
There is nothing normal about a law that makes it illegal to pass out water or food to people standing in long voting lines.
(Applause.)
And I have met with voters in Georgia.
I have heard your outrage about the anti-voter law here and how many voters will likely be kept from voting.
And Georgia is not alone.
Across our nation, anti-voter laws could make it more difficult for as many as 55 million Americans to vote.
That is one out of six people in our country.
And the proponents of these laws are not only putting in place obstacles to the ballot box, they are also working to interfere with our elections to get the outcomes they want and to discredit those they don’t.
That is not how a democracy should work.
My fellow Americans: Do not succumb to those who would dismiss this assault on voting rights as an unfounded threat — who would wave this off as a partisan game.
The assault on our freedom to vote will be felt by every American, in every community, in every political party.
And if we stand idly by, our entire nation will pay the price for generations to come.
As Dr. King said, “The battle is in our hands.”
And today, the battle is in the hands of the leaders of the American people, those in particular that the American people sent to the United States Senate.
Two landmark bills sit before the United States Senate: the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act.
(Applause.)
And these two bills represent the first real opportunity to secure the freedom to vote since the United States Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act nearly a decade ago.
We do not know when we will have this opportunity again.
Senate Republicans have exploited arcane rules to block these bills.
And let us be clear: The Constitution of the United States gives the Congress the power to pass legislation.
And nowhere — nowhere — does the Constitution give a minority the right to unilaterally block legislation.
(Applause.)
The American people have waited long enough.
The Senate must act.
And the bottom line is this: Years from now, our children and our grandchildren, they will ask us about this moment.
They will look back on this time, and they will ask us not about how we felt — they will ask us what did we do.
We cannot tell them that we let a Senate rule stand in the way of our most fundamental freedom.
Instead, let us tell them that we stood together as people of conscience and courage.
Let us tell them we acted with the urgency that this moment demands.
And let us tell them we secured the freedom to vote, that we ensured free and fair elections, and we safeguarded our democracy for them and their children.
And now, my fellow Americans, it is now my honor to introduce a leader who is unwavering in his commitment to defend our democracy and ensure the ballot prevails: the President of the United States of America, Joe Biden.
(Applause.)
END 4:14 P.M. EST
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-roo ... t-to-vote/
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
BUSINESS INSIDER
"DNC members are 'overly optimistic' about Democrats' chances in the midterms despite increasingly grim polling for Biden and the party"
kepstein@businessinsider.com (Kayla Epstein)
12 MARCH 2022
* Democratic National Committee members met in Washington this week for party business.
* Democrats' polling is grim ahead of the midterms, but members were still optimistic.
* Democratic leadership attempted a last-minute messaging reset as the midterm elections got underway.
Their public approval was underwater, but Democrats were stubbornly upbeat at their party meeting in DC this week.
Beginning on Thursday, Hundreds of Democratic National Committee members streamed into the Washington Hilton, after two years of convening in the doldrums of Zoom.
Officials went about party business during the day and attended cocktail hours at night.
The resolutions committee recommended resolutions, to be recommended to the membership.
Investments at the grassroots level were repeatedly affirmed.
Speeches were given, minutes were taken, chairs were elected, motions were seconded.
At Saturday's closing event, DNC finance chairman Chris Korge declared the weekend had "literally been flawless."
But a cloud hung over the entire affair, which had nothing to do with the winter storm that blew into town on Saturday and enveloped the Hilton in a life-sized snow globe.
A poll released on Friday by the Wall Street Journal found that Democrats were losing ground to Republicans on a bevy of key issues, including their handling of COVID-19.
A stark 57% of voters disapproved of President Joe Biden's performance, while only 42% approved.
Voters trusted Republicans over Democrats on major issues like restoring the economy, securing the border, curbing inflation, and returning children to schools.
The data dropped after months of low approval ratings for the president.
In what amounted to a 72-hour pep rally, Democratic leadership attempted a last-minute messaging reset as the midterm elections truly got underway.
Their directive to DNC members was clear: if they could make voters understand what Democrats had done for them, the party would prevail against historical odds in November.
The Democratic Party had a "message that resonates," President Joe Biden assured DNC members in a speech on Thursday.
"Now what we have to do is sell it with confidence, clarity and conviction and repetition."
DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison introduced a refrain of "Democrats Deliver," which he sprinkled into impassioned speeches to various caucus and council meetings.
In his speech, Biden distilled his economic accomplishments into talking points aimed squarely at the middle class, which members from across the country could repeat back in their states.
Harrison, Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and other party stalwarts emphasized the main bullet points of the trillion-dollar fiscal infusions from the American Rescue Plan and bipartisan infrastructure bill, such as the recently-expired child tax credit aimed at working families, and funds to repair bridges and expand broadband internet.
The political landscape left DNC members trying to navigate their emotions between realism and optimism this week.
In interviews with Insider, they acknowledged their party would have an uphill battle to keep their majority in the US House and Senate given the turmoil of the past two years, but had taken to heart the idea that they would prevail with consistent outreach.
"I am overly optimistic," said Lottie Shackelford, a member from Arkansas and chair of the DNC Women's Council.
"I know what history says that the party in power, particularly in the presidency, tends to lose seats in the midterms."
"But it's like everything else."
"These are still very different times."
"And if people take a look at where they are, and what Democrats are doing to deliver for them, then I'm hopeful that's going to be enough to propel us to be able to not just maintain — even to grow our numbers a little bit — in the Congress."
"It's just going to take a lot of work and making sure we turn out Democrats, and when Democrats turn out, we win," Kansas Democratic Party Chair Vicki Hiatt said.
"It's a challenge," said Radhika Nath, a DNC member from Colorado.
"We need to make sure that people are feeling the effect at the grassroots level."
"And so we have work to do, we have to reach out to people where they are, at the moment."
"I can tell you," DNC treasurer Virginia McGregor declared at a Saturday presentation, "We are going to win."
Historically, the president's party loses seats in Congress in the midterm elections, a fact DNC members repeatedly acknowledged before launching into an explanation of how they'd defy the odds.
This year, the Democrats face their biggest midterms challenge since the 2010 cycle, when Republicans swept into power in Congress thanks to activism from the nascent Tea Party movement.
The conservative grassroots effort advocated for fiscal restraint, but was also animated by backlash against the election of Barack Obama, the nation's first Black president.
The costs of any losses are steep.
If Democrats lose a single seat in the US Senate, the chamber cedes to Republican control.
Meanwhile, Democrats control the US House of Representatives by just 11 seats, and 31 of their representatives will retire or seek higher office before the next term.
At stake is Biden and Harris' ability to pass any major policy initiatives into law.
"The work ahead is not going to be easy, everybody knows that," Harris said in a speech to DNC members on Saturday.
"When we show what we have accomplished, just in a year, and when we show it is because the American people voted, I believe we will meet the moment again."
"Our task is to show people that in many ways they got what they ordered," she said.
Then Harris stepped off the stage to a standing ovation, and McFadden and Whitehead's "Ain't No Stopping Us Now" blasted over the loudspeakers.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... d=msedgntp
"DNC members are 'overly optimistic' about Democrats' chances in the midterms despite increasingly grim polling for Biden and the party"
kepstein@businessinsider.com (Kayla Epstein)
12 MARCH 2022
* Democratic National Committee members met in Washington this week for party business.
* Democrats' polling is grim ahead of the midterms, but members were still optimistic.
* Democratic leadership attempted a last-minute messaging reset as the midterm elections got underway.
Their public approval was underwater, but Democrats were stubbornly upbeat at their party meeting in DC this week.
Beginning on Thursday, Hundreds of Democratic National Committee members streamed into the Washington Hilton, after two years of convening in the doldrums of Zoom.
Officials went about party business during the day and attended cocktail hours at night.
The resolutions committee recommended resolutions, to be recommended to the membership.
Investments at the grassroots level were repeatedly affirmed.
Speeches were given, minutes were taken, chairs were elected, motions were seconded.
At Saturday's closing event, DNC finance chairman Chris Korge declared the weekend had "literally been flawless."
But a cloud hung over the entire affair, which had nothing to do with the winter storm that blew into town on Saturday and enveloped the Hilton in a life-sized snow globe.
A poll released on Friday by the Wall Street Journal found that Democrats were losing ground to Republicans on a bevy of key issues, including their handling of COVID-19.
A stark 57% of voters disapproved of President Joe Biden's performance, while only 42% approved.
Voters trusted Republicans over Democrats on major issues like restoring the economy, securing the border, curbing inflation, and returning children to schools.
The data dropped after months of low approval ratings for the president.
In what amounted to a 72-hour pep rally, Democratic leadership attempted a last-minute messaging reset as the midterm elections truly got underway.
Their directive to DNC members was clear: if they could make voters understand what Democrats had done for them, the party would prevail against historical odds in November.
The Democratic Party had a "message that resonates," President Joe Biden assured DNC members in a speech on Thursday.
"Now what we have to do is sell it with confidence, clarity and conviction and repetition."
DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison introduced a refrain of "Democrats Deliver," which he sprinkled into impassioned speeches to various caucus and council meetings.
In his speech, Biden distilled his economic accomplishments into talking points aimed squarely at the middle class, which members from across the country could repeat back in their states.
Harrison, Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and other party stalwarts emphasized the main bullet points of the trillion-dollar fiscal infusions from the American Rescue Plan and bipartisan infrastructure bill, such as the recently-expired child tax credit aimed at working families, and funds to repair bridges and expand broadband internet.
The political landscape left DNC members trying to navigate their emotions between realism and optimism this week.
In interviews with Insider, they acknowledged their party would have an uphill battle to keep their majority in the US House and Senate given the turmoil of the past two years, but had taken to heart the idea that they would prevail with consistent outreach.
"I am overly optimistic," said Lottie Shackelford, a member from Arkansas and chair of the DNC Women's Council.
"I know what history says that the party in power, particularly in the presidency, tends to lose seats in the midterms."
"But it's like everything else."
"These are still very different times."
"And if people take a look at where they are, and what Democrats are doing to deliver for them, then I'm hopeful that's going to be enough to propel us to be able to not just maintain — even to grow our numbers a little bit — in the Congress."
"It's just going to take a lot of work and making sure we turn out Democrats, and when Democrats turn out, we win," Kansas Democratic Party Chair Vicki Hiatt said.
"It's a challenge," said Radhika Nath, a DNC member from Colorado.
"We need to make sure that people are feeling the effect at the grassroots level."
"And so we have work to do, we have to reach out to people where they are, at the moment."
"I can tell you," DNC treasurer Virginia McGregor declared at a Saturday presentation, "We are going to win."
Historically, the president's party loses seats in Congress in the midterm elections, a fact DNC members repeatedly acknowledged before launching into an explanation of how they'd defy the odds.
This year, the Democrats face their biggest midterms challenge since the 2010 cycle, when Republicans swept into power in Congress thanks to activism from the nascent Tea Party movement.
The conservative grassroots effort advocated for fiscal restraint, but was also animated by backlash against the election of Barack Obama, the nation's first Black president.
The costs of any losses are steep.
If Democrats lose a single seat in the US Senate, the chamber cedes to Republican control.
Meanwhile, Democrats control the US House of Representatives by just 11 seats, and 31 of their representatives will retire or seek higher office before the next term.
At stake is Biden and Harris' ability to pass any major policy initiatives into law.
"The work ahead is not going to be easy, everybody knows that," Harris said in a speech to DNC members on Saturday.
"When we show what we have accomplished, just in a year, and when we show it is because the American people voted, I believe we will meet the moment again."
"Our task is to show people that in many ways they got what they ordered," she said.
Then Harris stepped off the stage to a standing ovation, and McFadden and Whitehead's "Ain't No Stopping Us Now" blasted over the loudspeakers.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... d=msedgntp
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
ABC NEWS
Hillary Clinton on Syria: 'Assad Must Go'
https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/hillar ... d-16050179
FOX NEWS
"Kamala Harris distances herself from Biden remark calling for Putin's removal: 'We are not into regime change'"
Joseph Wulfsohn
1 APRIL 2022
Vice President Kamala Harris was pressed about whether she agreed with President Biden's controversial remark calling for Russian President Vladimir Putin's removal from power.
Biden generated international headlines after his speech in Warsaw, Poland, when he told the world in what apparently was an off-script remark that Putin "cannot remain in power."
The White House immediately rolled that back, releasing a statement saying, "The president’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region."
"He was not discussing Putin’s power in Russia, or regime change."
During an interview that aired Friday on MSNBC, "ReidOut" host Joy Reid asked the vice president if she agreed that Putin "should no longer be the leader of Russia."
Harris initially dodged the question by giving a long-winded answer, pivoting to the "serious consequence" the Biden administration vows to place on Putin for his aggression toward Ukraine, citing "severe sanctions" she said are "having a real impact and an immediate impact, not to mention the longer-term impact."
After Harris recapped her recent visit to Europe, Reid continued her line of questioning about Putin by asking if the sanctions should remain in place "as long as Vladimir Putin is the dictator of Russia."
"Well, I'm not going to speculate about the future."
"I'm going to tell you where we are now."
"They are intact," Harris responded.
"And we will continue to upgrade them and make them so — more severe as appropriate."
"And as far as we are concerned, everything is on the table in that regard because we are seeing extreme atrocities."
"We are seeing maternity hospitals being bombed."
"We are seeing a location that was so clearly designated as being a shelter, a place of safety for children."
"We are seeing … millions of people being displaced, potentially permanently, in a war that was instigated, unprovoked, unjustified, against a whole population of people."
"So you know, the sanctions are going to be severe and they will last as long as these atrocities and this aggression is continuing," Harris added.
"So no luck on getting you to weigh in on whether he should be — whether he should remain?" Reid asked.
"Listen, let me be very clear, let me be very clear," Harris replied.
"We are not into regime change and that is not our policy."
"Period."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/ka ... 44caec5488
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
"Kamala Harris unpopular, unqualified: Rasmussen"
Opinion by Paul Bedard
4 APRIL 2022
Voter questions about President Joe Biden’s mental and physical fitness have done nothing to change continued doubts about his vice president, Kamala Harris.
According to the latest Rasmussen Reports survey, Biden’s No. 2 is seen as both unpopular and unqualified.
After recently stumbling over her words on several topics, Rasmussen found that 54% do not believe the former California senator is qualified to be president.
Just 42% do.
And it is notable that 45% see Harris as “not at all qualified” to be president, according to the poll previewed by Secrets.
Not surprisingly, then, voters have an unfavorable opinion of Harris.
Just 40% view the first female vice president favorably compared to 56% who have an unfavorable opinion.
Harris has been dogged by recent “word salads” and misstatements, massive staff turnovers and few accomplishments.
Just today, her deputy chief of staff quit.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... e19fd7851f
"Kamala Harris unpopular, unqualified: Rasmussen"
Opinion by Paul Bedard
4 APRIL 2022
Voter questions about President Joe Biden’s mental and physical fitness have done nothing to change continued doubts about his vice president, Kamala Harris.
According to the latest Rasmussen Reports survey, Biden’s No. 2 is seen as both unpopular and unqualified.
After recently stumbling over her words on several topics, Rasmussen found that 54% do not believe the former California senator is qualified to be president.
Just 42% do.
And it is notable that 45% see Harris as “not at all qualified” to be president, according to the poll previewed by Secrets.
Not surprisingly, then, voters have an unfavorable opinion of Harris.
Just 40% view the first female vice president favorably compared to 56% who have an unfavorable opinion.
Harris has been dogged by recent “word salads” and misstatements, massive staff turnovers and few accomplishments.
Just today, her deputy chief of staff quit.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... e19fd7851f
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
"Biden suspected Kamala Harris team of sabotaging rivals during veep search"
Katherine Doyle
25 APRIL 2022
During a bruising vetting process to name his vice presidential running mate in 2020, Joe Biden wondered whether advisers to Kamala Harris were behind the flood of negative press coverage that engulfed some of her well-placed rivals.
While candidates expect to face heavy scrutiny, the authors of a forthcoming book wrote that “something about this seemed more deliberate, even targeted” as Biden and his advisers searched for a reliable No. 2 who would not hurt his chances in a general election.
The onslaught was “aimed at all of the most formidable Black women under consideration,” wrote Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns of the New York Times.
“Except for Kamala Harris.”
Harris’s team was known for circulating blistering opposition research on other candidates during the primary contest, driving suspicion to the top that they were behind attempts to sabotage the California senator’s rivals, according to Martin and Burns in This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America’s Future.
California Rep. Karen Bass was pressed to answer for her warm remembrance of Fidel Castro and praise for the Church of Scientology as statements and videos circulated in news articles and on social media.
Aides to Susan Rice, a White House national security adviser to former President Barack Obama, learned of a dossier that detailed criticism of her tough management style.
The deluge struck many as a tactical move.
According to Martin and Burns, “Even Joe Biden wondered aloud: Was Harris’s team driving this?”
Bass had drawn strong support from California Democrats and allies in Washington, including former Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, a member of Biden’s vice presidential search committee.
And when the gloves came off for Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee was alarmed.
“Biden was startled by some of the intra-state factional attacks on Harris by her fellow Democrats, including members of the state’s large congressional delegation,” the authors wrote in the book set to be published on May 3.
Prominent California Democrats and political operatives had vouched for Bass when her name began circulating, with some “explicitly” urging her as an alternative to Harris.
David Crane, a top adviser to former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, was one powerful voice lobbying for the Golden State representative, who chaired the Congressional Black Caucus at the time.
“In contrast to Kamala Harris,” Crane told Biden’s advisers, “Karen cares about something greater than herself.”
But Crane's withering dismissal did not hold.
Harris had a well-placed supporter, with Biden’s close adviser Ron Klain supporting her early on, believing that she was the best person for the job.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... 689281a957
"Biden suspected Kamala Harris team of sabotaging rivals during veep search"
Katherine Doyle
25 APRIL 2022
During a bruising vetting process to name his vice presidential running mate in 2020, Joe Biden wondered whether advisers to Kamala Harris were behind the flood of negative press coverage that engulfed some of her well-placed rivals.
While candidates expect to face heavy scrutiny, the authors of a forthcoming book wrote that “something about this seemed more deliberate, even targeted” as Biden and his advisers searched for a reliable No. 2 who would not hurt his chances in a general election.
The onslaught was “aimed at all of the most formidable Black women under consideration,” wrote Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns of the New York Times.
“Except for Kamala Harris.”
Harris’s team was known for circulating blistering opposition research on other candidates during the primary contest, driving suspicion to the top that they were behind attempts to sabotage the California senator’s rivals, according to Martin and Burns in This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America’s Future.
California Rep. Karen Bass was pressed to answer for her warm remembrance of Fidel Castro and praise for the Church of Scientology as statements and videos circulated in news articles and on social media.
Aides to Susan Rice, a White House national security adviser to former President Barack Obama, learned of a dossier that detailed criticism of her tough management style.
The deluge struck many as a tactical move.
According to Martin and Burns, “Even Joe Biden wondered aloud: Was Harris’s team driving this?”
Bass had drawn strong support from California Democrats and allies in Washington, including former Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, a member of Biden’s vice presidential search committee.
And when the gloves came off for Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee was alarmed.
“Biden was startled by some of the intra-state factional attacks on Harris by her fellow Democrats, including members of the state’s large congressional delegation,” the authors wrote in the book set to be published on May 3.
Prominent California Democrats and political operatives had vouched for Bass when her name began circulating, with some “explicitly” urging her as an alternative to Harris.
David Crane, a top adviser to former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, was one powerful voice lobbying for the Golden State representative, who chaired the Congressional Black Caucus at the time.
“In contrast to Kamala Harris,” Crane told Biden’s advisers, “Karen cares about something greater than herself.”
But Crane's withering dismissal did not hold.
Harris had a well-placed supporter, with Biden’s close adviser Ron Klain supporting her early on, believing that she was the best person for the job.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... 689281a957
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
BUSINESS INSIDER
"Biden threatened to fire his aides if they leaked any negative stories about Kamala Harris: book"
bgriffiths@insider.com (Brent D. Griffiths, Oma Seddiq)
29 APRIL 2022
Biden threatened to fire his aides if he found out they were leaking negative stories about Harris.
The warning was reported in a forthcoming book by two New York Times journalists.
Harris has faced low public approval ratings during her vice presidency.
President Joe Biden threatened to fire any of his senior aides if he learned that they were behind a string of negative stories about Vice President Kamala Harris and her office, according to a forthcoming book.
The warning came last year after several news outlets published stories that described dysfunction in Harris' office and tensions between her staffers and Biden's.
The White House defended Harris in public statements and dismissed the reports.
"No one was more frustrated by the leaks than Joe Biden."
"The president had known many of Harris's shortcomings when he chose her to be his running mate, but he was defensive of her and irritated by the unsightly drama spilling into view," New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alex Burns wrote in "This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America's Future."
Insider obtained an advance copy of the book before its publication on Tuesday.
Biden gathered his senior staff to the Oval Office, and told them he would let them go if they leaked such stories about Harris, according to the book.
Harris's vice president has not been smooth sailing.
She's faced low public approval ratings and a string of top advisors have left her office.
According to the book, when White House chief of staff Ron Klain met last April with Rep. Kathy Manning, a Democrat from North Carolina, he was dismayed to find out that Manning had been left out of parts of Harris' recent trip to her district.
The White House often makes it a point to include lawmakers in top officials' stops and Biden often notes their presence from the podium.
"That makes me want to vomit," Klain said, according to the authors, based on one person's account of the meeting.
The White House did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
An official previously told Insider that the administration did not plan on engaging in "confirmation or denials" about the book's specific claims.
"We respect that there will be no shortage of books written about the administration containing a wide variety of claims," Deputy Press Secretary Chris Meagher said in a statement.
"We don't plan to engage in confirmations or denials when it comes to the specifics of those claims."
The book is replete with examples of how Biden's team reportedly mocked Harris' team.
In one example, West Wing staff mocked the suggestion that the vice president would carve out an international portfolio by taking the lead on relations with Nordic countries.
The private derision went even further when it was floated that Harris should give a sweeping speech on foreign policy.
"Biden aides vetoed the idea," the authors write.
"Why should a vice president have their own independently articulated view of global affairs?"
One of the biggest flashpoints came over a relatively trivial slight.
Harris' team was upset with the photo Vogue selected for its February 2021 issue.
A Biden advisor, according to the book, told Harris' enraged aides and her then-chief of staff Tina Flournoy that there were bigger things to deal with ahead of the inauguration that would take place shortly after the insurrection.
"Tina, the advisor said," the authors write, "these are first world problems."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... e0a5513ded
"Biden threatened to fire his aides if they leaked any negative stories about Kamala Harris: book"
bgriffiths@insider.com (Brent D. Griffiths, Oma Seddiq)
29 APRIL 2022
Biden threatened to fire his aides if he found out they were leaking negative stories about Harris.
The warning was reported in a forthcoming book by two New York Times journalists.
Harris has faced low public approval ratings during her vice presidency.
President Joe Biden threatened to fire any of his senior aides if he learned that they were behind a string of negative stories about Vice President Kamala Harris and her office, according to a forthcoming book.
The warning came last year after several news outlets published stories that described dysfunction in Harris' office and tensions between her staffers and Biden's.
The White House defended Harris in public statements and dismissed the reports.
"No one was more frustrated by the leaks than Joe Biden."
"The president had known many of Harris's shortcomings when he chose her to be his running mate, but he was defensive of her and irritated by the unsightly drama spilling into view," New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alex Burns wrote in "This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America's Future."
Insider obtained an advance copy of the book before its publication on Tuesday.
Biden gathered his senior staff to the Oval Office, and told them he would let them go if they leaked such stories about Harris, according to the book.
Harris's vice president has not been smooth sailing.
She's faced low public approval ratings and a string of top advisors have left her office.
According to the book, when White House chief of staff Ron Klain met last April with Rep. Kathy Manning, a Democrat from North Carolina, he was dismayed to find out that Manning had been left out of parts of Harris' recent trip to her district.
The White House often makes it a point to include lawmakers in top officials' stops and Biden often notes their presence from the podium.
"That makes me want to vomit," Klain said, according to the authors, based on one person's account of the meeting.
The White House did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
An official previously told Insider that the administration did not plan on engaging in "confirmation or denials" about the book's specific claims.
"We respect that there will be no shortage of books written about the administration containing a wide variety of claims," Deputy Press Secretary Chris Meagher said in a statement.
"We don't plan to engage in confirmations or denials when it comes to the specifics of those claims."
The book is replete with examples of how Biden's team reportedly mocked Harris' team.
In one example, West Wing staff mocked the suggestion that the vice president would carve out an international portfolio by taking the lead on relations with Nordic countries.
The private derision went even further when it was floated that Harris should give a sweeping speech on foreign policy.
"Biden aides vetoed the idea," the authors write.
"Why should a vice president have their own independently articulated view of global affairs?"
One of the biggest flashpoints came over a relatively trivial slight.
Harris' team was upset with the photo Vogue selected for its February 2021 issue.
A Biden advisor, according to the book, told Harris' enraged aides and her then-chief of staff Tina Flournoy that there were bigger things to deal with ahead of the inauguration that would take place shortly after the insurrection.
"Tina, the advisor said," the authors write, "these are first world problems."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... e0a5513ded
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
REUTERS
"White House to host union organizers at Amazon, Starbucks"
By David Shepardson
MAY 3, 2022
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will host a White House meeting on Thursday with organizers from unions seeking to represent workers at Amazon.com Inc, Starbucks and other employers.
The meeting will include Christian Smalls, who heads the Amazon Labor Union, and other grassroots organizers from Starbucks/SEIU, United Paizo Workers/CWA, Baltimore Public Library/IAM, and a union that has organized workers at an outlet of REI, the outdoor goods retailer, a White House official said.
The meeting is discuss “their extraordinary efforts to organize unions in their workplaces, and how their efforts can inspire workers across the country to make the choice to join or organize a union,” the official added.
Workers at more than 50 U.S. Starbucks cafes have elected to join the Workers United union, while five stores voted against the union, out of roughly 240 altogether that have sought to hold elections since August.
Starbucks told investors on Tuesday it will invest $1 billion in employees in this fiscal year and said by this summer its average U.S. pay will be $17 an hour, with starting wages to range from $15 to $23.
The U.S. Senate Budget Committee will hold a hearing Thursday on Amazon’s labor practices with Smalls, as well as Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien and Greg LeRoy, executive director of Good Jobs First.
Last month, President Joe Biden drew loud applause at a labor event when he turned a spotlight on Amazon.
After highlighting a government task force on worker organization he launched a year ago “to make sure the choice to join a union belongs to workers alone,” Biden called out Amazon.
“And by the way, by the way, Amazon here we come."
"Watch."
"Watch,” Biden said.
Widely considered the most pro-union president in decades, Biden has swiftly ousted government officials deemed by unions to be hostile to labor and reversed rules of past President Donald Trump that critics said weakened worker protections.
Last week, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders urged Biden to issue an executive order cutting off federal contracts to Amazon, saying the online retailer “has become the poster child for illegal anti-union behavior while raking in billions in federal contracts.”
Workers at an Amazon warehouse in New York City recently voted to form the first union at the second-largest U.S. private employer and join the Amazon Labor Union under the leadership of Smalls, a former worker who has argued for higher pay and job security.
Amazon objected and accused the union of threatening workers unless they voted to organize, an allegation denied by the labor group.
Separately, Amazon workers voted against unionizing a second warehouse in New York City, a ballot count on Monday showed, representing a defeat for labor organizers.
Amazon and Starbucks did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese and David Gregorio
https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-ama ... SKCN2MP1P0
"White House to host union organizers at Amazon, Starbucks"
By David Shepardson
MAY 3, 2022
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will host a White House meeting on Thursday with organizers from unions seeking to represent workers at Amazon.com Inc, Starbucks and other employers.
The meeting will include Christian Smalls, who heads the Amazon Labor Union, and other grassroots organizers from Starbucks/SEIU, United Paizo Workers/CWA, Baltimore Public Library/IAM, and a union that has organized workers at an outlet of REI, the outdoor goods retailer, a White House official said.
The meeting is discuss “their extraordinary efforts to organize unions in their workplaces, and how their efforts can inspire workers across the country to make the choice to join or organize a union,” the official added.
Workers at more than 50 U.S. Starbucks cafes have elected to join the Workers United union, while five stores voted against the union, out of roughly 240 altogether that have sought to hold elections since August.
Starbucks told investors on Tuesday it will invest $1 billion in employees in this fiscal year and said by this summer its average U.S. pay will be $17 an hour, with starting wages to range from $15 to $23.
The U.S. Senate Budget Committee will hold a hearing Thursday on Amazon’s labor practices with Smalls, as well as Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien and Greg LeRoy, executive director of Good Jobs First.
Last month, President Joe Biden drew loud applause at a labor event when he turned a spotlight on Amazon.
After highlighting a government task force on worker organization he launched a year ago “to make sure the choice to join a union belongs to workers alone,” Biden called out Amazon.
“And by the way, by the way, Amazon here we come."
"Watch."
"Watch,” Biden said.
Widely considered the most pro-union president in decades, Biden has swiftly ousted government officials deemed by unions to be hostile to labor and reversed rules of past President Donald Trump that critics said weakened worker protections.
Last week, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders urged Biden to issue an executive order cutting off federal contracts to Amazon, saying the online retailer “has become the poster child for illegal anti-union behavior while raking in billions in federal contracts.”
Workers at an Amazon warehouse in New York City recently voted to form the first union at the second-largest U.S. private employer and join the Amazon Labor Union under the leadership of Smalls, a former worker who has argued for higher pay and job security.
Amazon objected and accused the union of threatening workers unless they voted to organize, an allegation denied by the labor group.
Separately, Amazon workers voted against unionizing a second warehouse in New York City, a ballot count on Monday showed, representing a defeat for labor organizers.
Amazon and Starbucks did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese and David Gregorio
https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-ama ... SKCN2MP1P0
Re: KAMALA HARRIS
FOX NEWS
"Varney: Another Biden failure, another Harris embarrassment"
Fox Business
30 JUNE 2022
During Stuart Varney's latest "My Take," Thursday, the FOX Business host slammed President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris over their handling of the border crisis, citing it as another "failure" and "embarrassment" for the administration.
STUART VARNEY: The Vice President, Kamala Harris, has spoken out about the death of 53 migrants in that boiling-hot, sealed truck in Texas.
She also had something to say about the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, who had blamed the administration for the deaths.
The vice president has been widely criticized for her vague, "word salad" statements.
That was another one.
But let’s boil it down:
Harris says Governor Abbott went political instead of "dealing with the realities of the issue."
Wrong.
Governor Abbott is dealing with this awful reality - a reality created by Biden’s border failure.
It is Texas which is putting in resources.
It is Abbott who is doing Biden’s job.
Harris says the government is taking "smuggling" very seriously.
Well, let’s call it by its proper name: it is "human trafficking," and whatever the government is doing about it, is not working!
She says, "we have a broken immigration system that was decimated by the last administration."
What?
It was Trump who got the border under control.
It was Biden who invited migrants in.
And it was Harris, the '"Border Czar," who watched them come in by the million.
Another Biden failure.
Another Harris embarrassment.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... 0361055993
"Varney: Another Biden failure, another Harris embarrassment"
Fox Business
30 JUNE 2022
During Stuart Varney's latest "My Take," Thursday, the FOX Business host slammed President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris over their handling of the border crisis, citing it as another "failure" and "embarrassment" for the administration.
STUART VARNEY: The Vice President, Kamala Harris, has spoken out about the death of 53 migrants in that boiling-hot, sealed truck in Texas.
She also had something to say about the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, who had blamed the administration for the deaths.
The vice president has been widely criticized for her vague, "word salad" statements.
That was another one.
But let’s boil it down:
Harris says Governor Abbott went political instead of "dealing with the realities of the issue."
Wrong.
Governor Abbott is dealing with this awful reality - a reality created by Biden’s border failure.
It is Texas which is putting in resources.
It is Abbott who is doing Biden’s job.
Harris says the government is taking "smuggling" very seriously.
Well, let’s call it by its proper name: it is "human trafficking," and whatever the government is doing about it, is not working!
She says, "we have a broken immigration system that was decimated by the last administration."
What?
It was Trump who got the border under control.
It was Biden who invited migrants in.
And it was Harris, the '"Border Czar," who watched them come in by the million.
Another Biden failure.
Another Harris embarrassment.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... 0361055993