The reason Kamala Harris is having a lousy vice presidency? It's a lousy job.


The vice presidency of the United States is a terrible job. It always has been. And right now, that terrible job belongs to Kamala Harris. It's turning out about how you'd expect.
On Sunday, CNN ran a lengthy story about how Harris and the White House are at odds — the result of dysfunction in Harris' office and an administration that doesn't quite know how to make the best use of her. That followed a Saturday piece from the Washington Post suggesting Harris' status among Democrats as the heir apparent to President Biden is increasingly in question. A recent poll puts her approval rating at a disastrous 28 percent.
The vice president isn't speaking publicly about all these criticisms, but Harris' allies have risen to her defense. Some note that President Biden has stuck Harris with some of the most intractable challenges facing his administration — most notably, immigration — while failing to give her a chance at a real win. "It would be nice to have some things that she could rally the nation around," one Democrat told the Post. "But that's not what she's been given." Others say the critical coverage is "racist and misogynist."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Maybe. But Harris' real problem is probably that the vice presidency isn't really a "rally the nation" kind of post. Usually, it's not even all that consequential; Dick Cheney, who served as a de facto prime minister during George W. Bush's presidency, was the exception to the rule.
Otherwise, the veep's role in American politics has mostly been to serve as national laughing stock and occasional political attack dog for the president — often but not always on the outside looking in when the big decisions are made. We don't remember vice presidents for their leadership but for outrageous or ridiculous moments: Spiro Agnew's "nattering nabobs" speech, Dan Quayle's spelling mishaps, and Joe Biden's "big f--king deal" gaffe. Even Lyndon Johnson, who was enormously consequential as both president and Senate majority leader, found himself bereft and purposeless as vice president. "I don't think I ever saw a more unhappy man," one of his secretaries said.
Vice presidents are enormously ambitious people who have to sublimate their own egos to serve a president's agenda while waiting in the wings — often fruitlessly — for the top job. That means the role often produces a lot of seething behind-the-scenes drama, and that seems to be what Harris is experiencing now. It's nothing new.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Parthenogenesis: the miracle of 'virgin births' in the animal kingdom
The Explainer Asexual reproduction, in which females reproduce without males by cloning themselves, has been documented in multiple species
-
What will bring Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table?
Today's Big Question With diplomatic efforts stalling, the US and EU turn again to sanctions as Russian drone strikes on Poland risk dramatically escalating conflict
-
Why social media is obsessed with cortisol
In The Spotlight Wellness trend is the latest response to an increasingly maligned hormone
-
Trump's drug war is now a real shooting war
Talking Points The Venezuela boat strike was 'not a mere law enforcement action'
-
Truck drivers are questioning the Trump administration's English mandate
Talking Points Some have praised the rules, others are concerned they could lead to profiling
-
Gavin Newsom's Trump-style trolling roils critics while thrilling fans
TALKING POINTS The California governor has turned his X account into a cutting parody of Trump's digital cadence, angering Fox News conservatives
-
Costco is at the center of an abortion debate
Talking Points The decision to no longer stock the abortion pill came following a pressure campaign by conservatives
-
What does occupying Gaza accomplish for Israel?
Talking Points Risking a 'strategic dead-end' in the fight against Hamas
-
Harris rules out run for California governor
Speed Read The 2024 Democratic presidential nominee ended months of speculation about her plans for the contest
-
Ghislaine Maxwell: angling for a Trump pardon
Talking Point Convicted sex trafficker's testimony could shed new light on president's links to Jeffrey Epstein
-
Does depopulation threaten humanity?
Talking Points Falling birth rates could create a 'smaller, sadder, poorer future'