Kamala Harris STRIKES Back: Snubs Vance

A long-standing courtesy between incoming and outgoing vice presidents has been set aside as Vice President Kamala Harris opted not to host Vice President-elect JD Vance for a traditional tour of the Naval Observatory residence before his inauguration. 

The break from protocol comes amid heightened political tensions, with Kamala Harris becoming the first incumbent vice president in recent history to forgo hosting their successor for a pre-inaugural visit to the 33-room Victorian home that has housed vice presidents and their families since the 1970s.

The official residence of the vice president is situated on the grounds of the US Naval Observatory, just a few miles away from the White House.

The decision comes after a contentious election campaign during which Vance referred to Harris as “trash” during a November rally. “They haven’t spoken since the election,” an adviser to Vance told CNN.

During the presidential campaign, Vance intensified his rhetoric against Harris, with comments ranging from policy criticism to personal attacks. Specifically during a rally in Atlanta, Georgia, Vance told supporters “in two days, we are gonna take out the trash in Washington, D.C. And the trash’s name is Kamala Harris.”

This comment followed earlier statements where he called Harris “a crazy person” during an appearance in Raeford, North Carolina.

In September, Vance made comments suggesting that, unlike former President Donald Trump, no one had tried to kill Harris. The White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned these remarks as “dangerous,” warning that such rhetoric could inspire violence against public officials.

Earlier controversy emerged when past comments surfaced of Vance criticizing Harris for not having biological children. He had grouped her with other politicians as “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives.” In a rare direct response to the personal attacks, Harris addressed Vance’s comments about her not having biological children. “These comments are mean and mean-spirited,” Harris said during an interview, where she discussed her own “modern family” and emphasized that families come in many forms.

While direct communication between Harris and Vance remains absent, their staffs have maintained some level of contact. Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff and incoming Second Lady Usha Vance spoke for approximately 45 minutes last week, though details of their conversation were not disclosed.

The Vance family has been preparing for their move to the Naval Observatory residence, located in northwest Washington, D.C. Through intermediaries, Usha Vance reached out to staff in November to inquire about childproofing requirements for their three children, all under eight years old. While these questions were initially rejected by a Harris political appointee, subsequent communications between the Vance team and Navy aides have addressed these concerns.

Around Christmas, the Vance family participated in a call with the Navy facilities team that manages the Naval Observatory to discuss “the layout of the residence, logistics and practicalities of the move in, and to help answer any questions the Vance’s had as it related to the residence,” according to a person familiar with the vice president’s schedule.

The pre-inaugural residence tour has been a recent tradition in vice presidential transitions. In November 2016, then-Vice President Joe Biden hosted Vice President-elect Mike Pence at the Naval Observatory for approximately two hours, which included lunch and a tour of the residence. In 2008, Vice President Dick Cheney welcomed Biden to the residence for nearly an hour.

Harris herself did not receive a tour before her inauguration in 2021, though advisers to Pence maintain that an invitation was quietly extended to Harris and Emhoff in the final days of the Trump administration. The circumstances were complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic and then-President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

Sources close to Harris defended her decision, citing her focus on other priorities, including a recently canceled overseas trip and California wildfire response. Meanwhile, sources close to Harris told CBS that arrangements are being made to accommodate the Vance children at the residence.

Harris’ own move into the residence was delayed until April 2021 due to necessary repairs, including updates to the heating and air system, chimney liners, and wooden floors.

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