Former Vice President Kamala Harris’ upcoming memoir, 107 Days, has sparked a firestorm among former aides to President Joe Biden, revealing deep-seated frustrations and divisions within the Democratic Party. In an excerpt published in The Atlantic on September 10, 2025, Harris criticizes Biden’s decision to run for re-election at age 81, calling it “reckless” and exposing what she describes as a lack of support from Biden’s team during her vice presidency. The comments have ignited a public rift between the two leaders’ camps, threatening their political partnership and raising questions about the party’s future.
Harris’ Criticisms of Biden’s Re-election Bid
In her memoir, Harris reflects on Biden’s choice to seek a second term despite concerns about his age and health. “It’s Joe and Jill’s decision,” she recalls the Biden team repeating, describing it as a mantra that felt like hypnosis. “Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness,” Harris writes. She argues that the stakes were too high for the decision to be left to “an individual’s ego” or “ambition.” Harris admits she considered urging Biden not to run but held back, fearing it would be seen as a power grab or disloyalty. “I was in the worst position to make the case that he should drop out,” she notes.
Harris also acknowledges Biden’s visible aging, writing, “At 81, Joe got tired. That’s when his age showed in physical and verbal stumbles.” While she insists she never believed Biden was incapacitated, her candid remarks contrast with her public defense of him during the 2024 campaign, such as when she criticized a report by special counsel Robert Hur that described Biden’s memory as “hazy” and “faulty.”
Allegations of Undermining by Biden’s Team
Harris’ memoir also details her struggles within the Biden administration, claiming that Biden’s inner circle undermined her efforts as vice president. She describes a “zero-sum” mindset among Biden’s aides, who she says viewed her success as diminishing the president. “If she’s shining, he’s dimmed,” Harris writes, arguing that the team failed to see her achievements as beneficial to Biden’s legacy. She accuses them of allowing negative media narratives about her to fester, including attacks on her laugh, tone, and past relationships, as well as false claims that she was a “DEI hire.”
Harris highlights her role in addressing immigration, a challenging task assigned by Biden, which led to her being mischaracterized as a “border czar” by Republicans. She claims the White House communications team did little to counter these attacks or highlight her accomplishments. “When the stories were unfair or inaccurate, the president’s inner circle seemed fine with it,” she writes. “It seemed as if they decided I should be knocked down a little bit more.”
Biden Aides Fire Back
Former Biden aides have responded with anger, accusing Harris of deflecting blame for her own shortcomings. One ex-official called Harris “simply not good at the job,” claiming she had “zero substantive role” in major policy initiatives and often appeared unprepared during public appearances. Another aide sarcastically remarked, “I’m not sure the very robust defense of not having the courage to speak up in the moment about Biden running is quite as persuasive as she thinks it is.” Some criticized her focus on media perception rather than substantive policy work, particularly on immigration, with one aide suggesting that Harris spent more time complaining about her image than addressing the issue.
Not all reactions were hostile. Former Biden chief of staff Ron Klain expressed sympathy, saying, “I thought she did a good job as [vice president] and I feel badly that she found the experience negative.” Other aides admitted that Harris faced mistreatment from some in Biden’s circle and praised her for speaking out. “We all know that the Biden folks treated her and her team like sh*t,” one former aide said. “We never thought she would actually say anything.”
A Fractured Partnership and Party
The public fallout comes after Harris warned Biden about the memoir excerpt in a phone call on September 9, 2025, but the gesture did little to soften the blow. The rift threatens a political partnership that endured challenges, from early tensions over race during the 2020 campaign to Harris’ loss in the 2024 presidential race to Donald Trump. Some Biden aides argue that Harris’ book, set for release on September 23, 2025, risks dividing the Democratic Party at a time when unity is critical to countering Trump’s agenda.
Critics within the party see Harris’ memoir as a political move to position herself for a potential 2028 presidential run. “No one wants to hear your pity party,” one former Biden official said, while another questioned why Harris didn’t distance herself from Biden during the 2024 campaign when it could have mattered. Others, however, believe her candor is necessary to address lingering questions about Biden’s re-election bid, which some Democrats view as a critical mistake. “One of the pretty critical questions Democrats have to answer in 2028 is, should Joe Biden have run?” a former Biden staffer said. “Democrats need a crisp answer on it.”
Looking Ahead
The release of 107 Days and its accompanying book tour will likely keep these tensions in the spotlight, as will Biden’s forthcoming memoir. The Democratic Party, still reeling from its 2024 loss, faces a challenging path forward with no clear standard-bearer for 2028. Potential candidates like Pete Buttigieg, Chris Murphy, and Ro Khanna have already weighed in on Biden’s re-election decision, signaling that the issue will remain a key litmus test for the party’s future.
As Democrats grapple with their past mistakes, some worry that revisiting these divisions distracts from pressing challenges, such as opposing Trump’s policies on tariffs, military deployment, and gerrymandering. “While the former vice president sets her own narrative, I wish more leaders with a platform would channel their energy into electing Democrats and fighting for more affordable food and housing,” said Meghan Hays, a former Biden White House official. For now, Harris’ memoir has reopened old wounds, leaving the Democratic Party to navigate a fraught and uncertain future.