'Bully' Kamala Harris cursed at, berated staff, 2019 opinion piece claims

The op/ed was written by the father of an intern while Harris was California AG

Published Aug 02, 2024 • Last updated Aug 02, 2024 • 2 minute read

Democratic Presidential candidate, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks during the Sigma Gamma Rho's 60th International Biennial Boule at the George R. Brown Convention Center on July 31, 2024 in Houston, Texas. Photo by Brandon Bell /Getty Images

Did the current vice-president of the United States previously act like a diva to her staff?

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According to a recently unearthed opinion piece published in 2019 in The Union newspaper, the presidential hopeful used to constantly snap at her staff while throwing F-bombs when she was the attorney general for California.

The op/ed — entitled “Another Side to Kamala Harris” and penned by Prof. Terry McAteer — discusses the “eye-opening” month that his son Gregory had while interning for Harris. McAteer wrote his son has seen a side of Harris “which the general public does not know.”

The opinion piece also alleged that staff didn’t introduce Gregory to Harris because they were fearful of her when she was attorney general between 2011 and 2017, per New York Post.

While the professor said he had nothing against Harris, he said the politician didn’t show quality leadership skills nor was she a decent boss that a summer intern might expect. The Post noted Gregory’s now-deleted LinkedIn page stated he worked as a public policy intern under Harris from June-August 2011.

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Previous reports had called Harris a “bully” by a staff member who had worked for her after she became vice-president in 2021. The ex-staffer told the Washington Post that it’s “clear that you’re not working with somebody who is willing to do the prep and the work” and that with Harris staff “have to put up with the constant amount of soul-destroying criticism and also her own lack of confidence.

“So you’re constantly sort of propping up a bull and it’s not really clear why,” said the staffer.

McAteer’s 2019 opinion piece resurfaced after government watchdog organization Open The Books reported Harris had a 91.5% staff turnover rate while serving in the White House, which surpasses President Joe Biden’s 77% turnover rate and Donald Trump’s 72% turnover rate while he was president.

Using payroll records as of March 31, 2024, Open the Books noted about four of the original 47 staff employed during Harris’ first year as vice-presidnet are still working for her. Harris currently has 50 staff as she campaigns to become the next president of the United States.