Washington, Nov 15 (IANS) US President Joe Biden's ties with Vice President Kamala Harris is in crisis, with the latter's staff furious that she is being 'sidelined', while the President's team is increasingly frustrated by how Harris is playing with the American public, the Daily Mail reported.
Harris' approval rating has plunged even further than Biden's in recent months, with rumours swirling that the US President is considering appointing her to the Supreme Court as a backdoor method of selecting a new Vice President, the report said.
Harris and her top aides are reportedly frustrated with Biden for handing her 'no-win' issues like the border crisis, White House insiders told CNN.
They cited how the President defended 'white man' Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, more vigorously than her.
At the same time, Biden's staff are reportedly disappointed with Harris over self-inflicted controversies, like her 'awkward' laughter when asked about visiting the border by NBC's Lester Holt.
They blame her failure on the border crisis for sliding poll numbers. A new ABC News/Washington Post poll shows Biden at 53 per cent disapproval and 41 per cent approval -- down 11 points from April, the report said.
Publicly, the White House insists that the relationship between Biden and Harris remains harmonious and productive.
But privately, Harris' aides gripe that she's been set up to fail, and handed a portfolio that is not commensurate with her historic status as the first woman, and first woman of colour, to hold the Vice President's office, the report said.
"They're consistently sending her out there on losing issues in the wrong situations for her skill set," a former high-level Harris aide told CNN.
Typically, the incumbent Vice President is considered an automatic lock for the party's next open-field presidential primary.
For the Democrats, it's not clear whether that day will come in 2024, if Biden decides not to seek re-election at the age 80, or 2028, if he runs again as he has vowed both publicly and privately.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who hosted the summit, and France's Emmanuel Macron were among those calling for an extension in order to more fully evacuate all foreign nationals and vulnerable Afghans who helped the Americans and the NATO allies before the country's recent fall to the Taliban.
The Pentagon promptly announced it will press ahead with plans to require members of the military to get vaccinated amid the battle against the extra-contagious delta variant. Louisiana State University likewise said it will demand its students get the shot.
The situation at the Kabul airport has remained tense ever since the Taliban fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, and gained full control over the Afghan capital within a few hours on August 15.
Barrons, a Dow Jones & Company publication, said that tensions in the "Middle East have the potential to lift prices." It noted that earlier JP Morgan had predicted that oil prices could touch $80 a barrel with rising demand and constraint supply.
While Biden has previously blamed Afghans for the U.S. failure to get out more allies ahead of this month's sudden Taliban takeover, U.S. officials told The Associated Press that American diplomats had formally urged weeks ago that the administration ramp up evacuation efforts.
In a statement on Friday, the U.N. health agency said the new scientific group would provide the WHO with an independent analysis of the work done to date to pinpoint the origins of COVID-19 and to advise the agency on necessary next steps. The experts will also provide guidance on critical issues regarding the potential emergence of other viruses capable of triggering outbreaks, such as MERS and Ebola.
