Former Kamala Harris staffer sent a report about the VP's office dysfunction to their therapist: 'Rarely in life are we publicly vindicated'

• Several former staffers to VP Harris echoed reporting about her office being dysfunctional.
• Many ex-staffers told Insider that Harris' previous offices were toxic and unpredictable.
• One person forwarded a report to their therapist, with a note that read: "Rarely in life are we publicly vindicated."

Several former staffers to Vice President Kamala Harris were not surprised to read reports that her office environment is being called unhealthy and dysfunctional, according to an Insider report published Wednesday.

A bombshell Politico report last month that described a tense workplace at the VP's White House operation spread "like wildfire" among former aides to Harris, many of whom "recognized themselves" in the story, an ex-staffer told Insider.

"WOW," a former Harris staffer wrote in response to a text about the article. "That is quite a story. Thank you for flagging."

One former Harris staffer forwarded the Politico report to their therapist, with a note that read: "Rarely in life are we publicly vindicated."

That former staffer said they had been seeking therapy once they learned President Joe Biden picked Harris as his running mate to "resolve trauma from the on-the-job abuse" endured when they worked for Harris.

Insider's Robin Bravender spoke with 12 former Harris staffers about the office culture when Harris was San Francisco's district attorney, California's attorney general, and a US senator.

Several ex-staffers described Harris as unpredictable and said that she had a habit of hanging up the phone on her staff. One told Insider that the attorney general's workplace was "toxic" and "reactionary."

Some, on the other hand, expressed concerns with the narrative that Harris' office was abusive and said they had loved working for her. One person described their time in Harris' previous office as the best experience of their life.

Senior advisors to the vice president have pushed back on the latest reports about her dysfunctional workplace environment.

"There's not consternation among aides," Harris' chief spokesperson Symone Sanders said earlier this month, according to Axios. "That is not true."

White House press secretary Jen Psaki also dismissed the reports during a press briefing on July 2.

"I try not to speak to or engage on anonymous reports or anonymous sources," Psaki said. "I will say that the vice president is an incredibly important partner to the president. She has a challenging job, a hard job. And she has a great, supportive team of people around her. But other than that I'm not going to have any more comments on those reports."

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