Kamala Harris received explicit instruction to tone down her praise of Joe Biden during her campaign.
Published on Sept. 24, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. ET
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Harris expressed surprise at the treatment of President Biden.
In her campaign’s infancy, Kamala Harris found herself grappling with her identity and message. Initially, her speeches were laden with praise for Joe Biden, her former boss. As she noted in her memoir, “I devoted the first part of my addresses to highlighting his achievements before pivoting to my own campaign goals.” However, this approach was soon deemed counterproductive by her team. Strategists advised her to focus on her candidacy instead.
David Plouffe, the campaign manager from Barack Obama’s 2008 election, bluntly expressed the reality to Harris, remarking, “People hate Joe Biden.”
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‘Biden F—ed Us’
Plouffe didn’t hold back in his opinions regarding Biden’s impact on the campaign.
Plouffe’s strong sentiments regarding Biden’s prolonged candidacy were highlighted in Jake Tapper’s book, Original Sin, where he characterized Harris’s hasty campaign launch as a “f—ing nightmare,” attributing the chaos directly to Biden. “He completely f—ed us,” he stated, further underscoring the challenges posed by Biden’s declining approval rating, which had dipped to 41% at the time he announced his exit.
Harris echoed this sentiment, referring to Biden’s approval as a “ball and chain dragging on my campaign.”
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Biden was ‘Reckless’
Plouffe’s criticism of Biden emphasizes his view that the former president’s ambition was misplaced.
In her memoir, Harris didn’t sugarcoat her critiques, labeling Biden’s unwillingness to step aside as “reckless.” “The stakes were too high,” she wrote. “This decision transcended personal ambition; it required a collective sense of responsibility.”
She also voiced skepticism regarding some of Biden’s staff who remained after his departure, lamenting that the Biden campaign lacked clear direction and was reactive rather than proactive in handling issues.
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Harris continues to grapple with residual tensions involving Biden’s former team.
In response to Harris’s memoir, Biden’s former aides have rallied to defend their former boss, launching pointed critiques against her leadership. An ex-White House official remarked to Axios that Harris was “inept in her role,” arguing she contributed minimally to the major initiatives of the administration, opting instead for superficial appearances that revealed her inexperience.
While Harris has argued that the compressed timeline of her campaign stunted her chances of success, a Biden aide countered, placing the blame squarely on her shoulders, stating, “The independent variable here is the vice president, not Biden or his aides.” The aide noted that several team members had aimed to bolster her prospects, but claimed Harris and her team failed to capitalize on the resources extended to them, labeling the situation a “tragedy.”
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