Harris was speaking on behalf of the NDAA, as a board member, and relied on the same support staff to help prepare her statement.”
He added that he was not aware of any direct conversations or collaboration with Harris on the preparation of their testimony, and that he did not know if the NDAA staff had communicated with her directly about it.
In light of the recent plagiarism allegations, the Free Beacon said it reached out to Harris’ office for comment but received no response.
Harris has faced previous accusations of stealing others’ work, most notably in 2019 when it was revealed that portions of her 2009 pro-criminal justice reform book, “Smart on Crime,” had used identical wording to academic studies, press reports and even a Wikipedia entry — all of which predated the publication’s release.
The revelations came from Manhattan Institute senior fellow Christopher Rufo, who discovered the unattributed passages while researching the book’s source material.
The vice president later apologized in a statement to the New York Times, saying that she was responsible for the content of the book and that it “should have been cited.”
It remains to be seen how the latest accusations of plagiarism will affect Harris’ reputation and political career moving forward.
For now, the vice president has yet to address the allegations publicly.
During her recent appearance before Congress, Senator Kamala Harris faced accusations of plagiarism in her 2009 book “Smart on Crime.” Manhattan Institute senior fellow Christopher Rufo uncovered that portions of Harris’ book had striking similarities to academic studies, press reports, and even a Wikipedia entry that predated the publication of her book.
It was revealed that Harris heavily relied on the staff of the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) for the content of her opening statement before Congress. The ghostwriter of Harris’ book, Joan O’C. Hamilton, appeared to be unaware of the plagiarized passages when contacted by The Post. However, the publisher internally acknowledged the accusations as a “very sensitive topic” that was being addressed by higher-ups.
Ghostwriter Joshua Lisec, a New York Times bestselling author, shared his insights on the situation, suggesting that Harris may have copied and pasted content from the internet without proper attribution. He emphasized that while the ghostwriter may not have been aware of the source of the material, Harris ultimately bears responsibility for the plagiarism as her name is on the book.
Despite the controversy, Lisec noted that Hamilton is a reputable and experienced ghostwriter who typically upholds high standards in her work. The South Dakota GOP Governor, Kristi Noem, also faced scrutiny for errors in her political memoir “No Going Back,” which were attributed to a ghostwriter.
As the accusations of plagiarism continue to swirl around Harris, the campaign and Hamilton have yet to respond to requests for comment. It remains to be seen how this controversy will impact Harris’ political career and public perception moving forward.
