Ron Klain: 'Sexism and racism are part of the problem' with Harris criticism

Former White House chief of staff Ron Klain says that sexism and racism are partially to blame for the swirl of criticism and negative stories that have followed Kamala Harris during her tenure as vice president.

“Well, I do think sexism and racism are part of the problem, no question about it,” Klain told Kara Swisher on an episode of her podcast, “On With Kara Swisher,” released Thursday. “I think she was not as well known in national politics before she became vice president. And I think that she hasn't gotten the credit for all that she's done.”

Klain’s comments come after a Reuters story published last month stated that Harris was “gearing up for another national campaign,” despite bad poll numbers and concerns about her from Democrats. Following that, senior administration officials publicly came to her defense.

White House chief of staff Jeff Zients said on Twitter that Harris was “an invaluable, relentless voice for the American people.”

Harris also had some public stumbles early on in the administration. The vice president faltered in early interviews and was given tricky portfolio items, such as stemming migration to the southern border. She also saw a number of top aides leave her office.

Klain, who was President Joe Biden's chief of staff for two years before resigning earlier this year, told Swisher that he thinks Harris “takes a lot of grief unjustifiably.”

“Because this is a country that always thinks dubiously about someone who's the No. 2,” Klain said. “We're a No. 1 kind of country. I lived with that when Al Gore and Joe Biden were vice president. She makes a major contribution to the administration, and I think, hopefully, she'll get more and more recognized for that.”