Leave it to Vice President Kamala Harris to mess up something as simple as a personnel decision.
Last week, her office announced that Jamal Simmons would replace former communications director Ashley Etienne, who left the White House in December. Etienne is one of several staffers to leave Harris’ office in the past six months.
Unfortunately for Harris, the move has led to a new round of embarrassment for the embattled vice president.
When he was a commentator for The Hill, Simmons seemingly questioned President Joe Biden’s mental acuity.
In a 2019 episode of his show “Why You Should Care,” he did a segment about then-candidate Biden’s falsehoods and gaffes called “Dazed and Confused?”
“It seems like we do this story about once a week. … It’s what you get with Uncle Joe,” Simmons said.
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In addition to those comments, Simmons appeared to take aim at weak policies on illegal immigration in a 2010 tweet.
“Just saw 2 undocumented folks talking on MSNBC,” he said. “One Law student the other a protester. Can someone explain why ICE is not picking them up?”
Just saw 2 undocumented folks talking on MSNBC. One Law student the other a protester. Can someone explain why ICE is not picking them up?
— Jamal Simmons (@JamalSimmons) November 29, 2010
That flies in the face of Biden and Harris’ lax approach to border security.
Moreover, Federal Election Commission filings show that Simmons made a $250 contribution to Republican Sen. Rand Paul’s presidential campaign in June 2015, according to Yahoo News.
The report indicated, however, that all of his other political donations have been to Democrats, including a donation to Harris’ 2015 Senate campaign.
More recently, Simmons denigrated the COVID-19 vaccines developed under then-President Donald Trump’s Operation Warp Speed:
Trump’s fatally ill-managed Coronavirus response seems to have turned voters off to him the way Katrina destroyed Bush’s political reputation, but pushing a janky science vaccine into the public for political purposes would turn incompetent culpability into intentional harm.
— Jamal Simmons (@JamalSimmons) September 3, 2020
On Friday, he responded to criticism of his comments.
“As a pundit I tweeted+spoke A LOT,” Simmons said on Twitter. “At times I’ve been sarcastic, unclear or plainly missed the mark.
“I apologize for offending ppl who care as much as I do about making America the best, multiethnic, diverse democracy+I’ll rep the Biden-Harris admin w/humility, sincerity+respect.”
As a pundit I tweeted+spoke A LOT. At times I’ve been sarcastic, unclear or plainly missed the mark. I apologize for offending ppl who care as much as I do about making America the best, multiethnic, diverse democracy+I’ll rep the Biden-Harris admin w/humility, sincerity+respect.
— Jamal Simmons (@JamalSimmons) January 7, 2022
Regarding the tweet about illegal immigrants, he said, “For the record, I’ve never advocated for, nor believed that Dreamers should be targeted by ICE agents. I’ve been for DACA + comprehensive immigration reform for years. Frankly, it’s depressing ppl can forget about every other thing I’ve said in public on this bc of bad tweets.”
For the record, I’ve never advocated for, nor believed that Dreamers should be targeted by ICE agents. I’ve been for DACA + comprehensive immigration reform for years. Frankly, it’s depressing ppl can forget about every other thing I’ve said in public on this bc of bad tweets.
— Jamal Simmons (@JamalSimmons) January 7, 2022
Yahoo reported that Simmons was deputy communications director for Democrat Al Gore’s failed 2000 presidential campaign.
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According to The Hill, he also worked for former Sen. Bob Graham of Florida, one-time presidential candidate Wesley Clark and former Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick of Michigan, all of whom are Democrats.
In addition, Simmons provided political commentary for left-leaning media outlets such as CNN and CBS News.
He is now tasked with crafting a positive narrative around some of the issues and politicians he previously criticized.
Let’s see what Simmons can accomplish for the vice president, whose first year in office has been underwhelming at best.
Her tenure can be compared to a bull in China shop who moves from one disaster to the next leaving destruction in her wake.
Harris’ approval rating dipped into the 20s several months ago but now stands at 39 percent, according to the RealClearPolitics average. The vice president’s average disapproval is at 53.
Will Simmons make a difference? Well, he’s not off to a very good start.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
