OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ approval ratings continue to nosedive as reports have surfaced that top in the White House have discussed replacing her.
A new Trafalgar Group poll found that the VP’s unpopularity has reached historic levels with her approval ratings being as low as virtually any politician ever recorded.
The poll found that just 28.5 percent of Americans approve of Harris with 62.6 percent of Americans disapproving of her. Just shy of 9 percent said they had “no opinion.”
Only 51 percent of Democrats approve of Harris while only 13.5 percent of Republicans and just 23.5 percent and Independents support her.
New #HarrisApproval @trafalgar_group #Poll (conducted 4/18-20) shows #KamalaHarris approval lower than #Biden:
28.5% Approve
62.6% Disapprove
8.9% No OpinionApproval by Party
51.5% #Dem
13.5% #GOP
23.5% #IndsSee Report: https://t.co/5Vx3oGNS43 pic.twitter.com/5DSpLhDS1w
— The Trafalgar Group (@trafalgar_group) April 22, 2022
A new survey reveals that several Democrat strategists are alarmed at Harris’ sinking poll numbers and are questioning whether she would actually harm the party in the 2022 midterm elections.
“Democratic Party power players also use the same words every day — spend, tax the rich, forgive student loan debt, companies and/or Putin are to blame for inflation — but the hopes of a win are dimming. The midterm elections loom, and voters battered by inflation, fed up with Washington brawls over spending bills, and unease over border security and immigration policy are expected to show their displeasure with Biden and Co. at the ballot box,” the Boston Herald reported.
“President Biden’s how-low-can-you-go approval rating of 39% would seem to offer a clue,” the report continued.
“The idea that spiking the tax on corporations would fund climate change investments and other top agenda items, with higher taxes on wealthy individuals also contributing to a government fiscal windfall has come up short with those who’ve crunched the numbers. Even the most draconian tax grabs couldn’t fund all of the Democratic spending sprees,” it added.
Some White House insiders have painted a picture of total chaos and discontent between Biden and Harris, according to CNN.
“Kamala Harris is a leader but is not being put in positions to lead,” a top Democratic donor said. “[Biden] should be putting her in positions to succeed, as opposed to putting weights on her. If you did give her the ability to step up and help her lead, it would strengthen you and strengthen the party.”
The CNN report also claims there’s a rumor that Biden has considered booting Harris from the vice presidency altogether and nominating her to a Supreme Court vacancy.
“That chatter has already reached top levels of the Biden orbit, according to one person who’s heard it,” CNN reported.
CNN’s report claims Biden allies in the administration have avoided dealing with Harris because they see “entrenched dysfunction and lack of focus” from her.
“She’s perceived to be in such a weak position that top Democrats in and outside of Washington have begun to speculate privately, asking each other why the White House has allowed her to become so hobbled in the public consciousness, at least as they see it,” the report said. “Republicans and right-wing media turned Harris into a political target from the moment she was picked for the ticket. And implicit racism and sexism have been constant.”
Allies to Harris have essentially accused members of Biden’s circle of being racist for not defending her.
A former Harris staffer, who spoke to current aides and Harris allies, said, “It’s hard to miss the specific energy that the White House brings to defend a white man, knowing that Kamala Harris has spent almost a year taking a lot of the hits that the West Wing didn’t want to take themselves.”
Over the summer, a new survey revealed that several Democrat strategists are alarmed at Harris’ sinking poll numbers and are questioning whether she would actually harm the party in the 2022 midterm elections.
With Harris being so unpopular, strategists worry that she won’t be able to help Democrats on the campaign trail next November.
Harris has become the most unpopular vice president six months into an administration since at least the 1970s.
