It reminds me if those stories you hear in which some rich, entitled white person hands their coat to a black man at a White House do, and it turns out he's the Secretary of Defense.
This has the same energy as when NYT published an article interviewing a reporter on what it's like to interview Harris, where it was noted that it feels like you're "on trial." God forbid an interviewee's interested in more than generic waffling and empty platitudes. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/28/us/politics/kamala-harris-interviews.html
How awful. You can't just have the vice president do what you want. You have to tell her why you want it.
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Harris sounds very much like the best bosses that I have ever had. They know their stuff and expect you to know yours.
I'm old enough to remember when papers ran (obviously fake) articles about GWB behaving like this to defend against the "he's very stupid" allegations.
Was this meant to be a hit piece or recommendation? I'm confused. This woman sounds like a challenging but excellent boss. I'd be on my toes, striving to do better work, and could assume I wouldn't be assigned shit tasks that add no value.
Washington DC is run on the fog of hopium and youthful hormones. Staffers are notoriously young, ambitious, and willing to work insane hours. They are however, young, ambitious, and easily distracted. Some things change, and some things stay the same.
I've had a few clueless/uncurious bosses and it was always kind of infuriating just because I had really tried to do a good job and *clearly* that didn't matter. I eventually reframed it as a CYA move on my part, in case they made a dumb decision and then looked for someone to blame.
Having to explain it to them, or, sometimes the alternate, they just want you to make it go away and you take sole responsibility for all of it, either way so stressful
Keith, an undecided voter who has served as Chairman of the Republican Car Dealership Owners Association of Idaho since 1992, says Harris' proposals are "out of step with the mainstream"
This is some sexist bullshit. What they are saying is that a woman shouldn’t question anything and, apparently, she shouldn’t know what the fuck she is doing. They are upset the guy they want to win can’t even bother reading a one-page bullet list and does things ‘because.’
Actually, that's probably a really good explanation for interpreting these 'charges' as negative. Congressional staffers in particular are often n00bs straight out of college in their first real job. Young, inexperienced, it would be terrifying to go from coddling smart kid to challenged jr staffer.
Contrast this with someone like Elon Musk, who intentionally surrounds himself with cultists. From what I’ve heard the way you convince him to accept an idea is to fool him into thinking he came up with it, and how brilliant he is for doing so.
Sounds like people who were told to complain but in a complimentary way, and aren't managing to be all that convincing... Weird that anybody bothered to write it down.
Not once have I "stressed out" that the person I was giving a brief/report to had "read the material". It is quite relaxing to report to people who already have a good grasp of the situation. The only person who would stress under these circumstances is someone who is not prepared.
WaPo prefers a leadership style that involves a jackass who signs anything you put in front of him, holds it up for the cameras while grinning like an idiot, then takes the afternoon off to play golf.
What’s the general slant on the whole article? Because there are probably plenty of staffers who resent bosses that don’t take such an approach because they are aware that it leads inevitably to a reduction in their own personal standards.
OMG, she won't take compliments and won't suffer sycophants! She is a strong woman who does a law enforcement job way too well! OMG, run boys! We need to get our guns and strut and posture and talk trash about her! Can't have a woman like that! Oh nooooo!!!! (Gumby voice)
“Both candidates have leadership styles that can make their staff members uncomfortable. Mr. Trump knows nothing and throws ketchup bottles at the wall. Ms. Harris asks clarifying questions.”
This aide sounds like a real lightweight. Dude, in any normal professional job you have to be able to justify everything you do. You can expect to be challenged for the justification of any action - past, present or future - at any moment. If you can’t handle that then find something else to do.
“I, an aide to the Vice President of The United States of America, could not tell her what to do and expect to be unquestioningly obeyed. Clearly this is a flaw in the VP.”
Have these folks never had a good boss? Mine isn’t even a dick, I like the guy very much. But if you’re giving him a presentation he’s going to ask you a bunch of questions about it, because the purpose of the presentation is to give him information.
She sounds like a great leader. The best bosses I have ever worked for always ask 'Why'. If you dont have an argument for what you are doing then you are in trouble.
Comments
HARRIS: Why? What are they?
STAFFER: [rubs temples] listen lady I have just about had it up to here with this shit from you
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Harris sounds very much like the best bosses that I have ever had. They know their stuff and expect you to know yours.
Yes, they can't use all the hand puppets and crayons still stored in the White House from when they were used to brief Trump.
https://www.axios.com/2023/07/10/biden-temper-us-president
Having to explain it to them, or, sometimes the alternate, they just want you to make it go away and you take sole responsibility for all of it, either way so stressful
Oh My Godzilla! She actually does her job?! SHOCKING. /snark.
[Sarcasm font]
“Yes” person: oh I agree, Madame Vice President.
Harris: why?
If you meant it, you know why. That's not gonna throw you off because you have an answer.
Hint to these clueless staffers, that's why the VP does this.
I mean, not the premise itself but the framing is wild
"Anonymous people who were fired for being mediocre don't like their former boss."
Wow, that's newsworthy.
this is what it’s like for women in America…times 1000 for women of color
"Lazy Staffers Realize They Can't Just Mail It In Anymore"