Kamala Harris brushes aside reports of tensions with Biden administration, says ‘excited about the work’

Vice President Kamala Harris has brushed aside reports that she feels “frustrated and underutilised” in the Biden administration.

"I am very, very excited about the work that we have accomplished," she said during an interview to ABC's Good Morning America programme. “But I am also absolutely, absolutely clear-eyed that there is a lot more to do and we're going to get it done.”

When asked whether she feels “misused or underused”, Harris retorted, “No, I don’t”.

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The response from Harris comes in the backdrop of a CNN report which claimed dysfunction between her team and the president’s office.

The report, citing unnamed sources from the administration, claimed that Harris feels sidelined in the administration and that she is feeling “constrained in what she's able to do politically.”

The report further claims that Harris “is struggling with a rocky relationship with some parts of the White House, while long-time supporters feel abandoned and see no coherent public sense of what she's done or been trying to do as vice president.”

The White House has also denied any tensions in the office.

“The president selected the vice president to serve as his running mate because he felt she was exactly the person you wanted to have by his side to govern the country," press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.

"She is a key partner. She's a bold leader. And she is somebody who has taken on incredibly important assignments.”

Meanwhile, Kamala Harris’ communications director Ashley Etienne has resigned from the office, a White House official told CNN.

‘Ashley is a valued member of the vice president’s team, who has worked tirelessly to advance the goals of this administration,’ the official said on Thursday. ‘She is leaving the office in December to pursue other opportunities.’

It is being said that Etienne’s exit was due as she ‘was not a good fit’ for the vice president’s office and did not actively shape the communications strategy forHarris.

(With inputs from agencies)