Vice President Kamala Harris' past appointments to state boards by former California Assembly Speaker Willie Brown have come under renewed scrutiny.
According to a Daily Mail report, Harris was frequently absent from meetings of the California Medical Assistance Commission (CMAC), a position she was appointed to by Brown in 1994 while they were dating.
The report claims that Harris missed over 20% of CMAC meetings, making her the most absent commissioner on the board. This information has resurfaced as Harris' relationship with Brown and her performance in these appointed positions face renewed questions.
Harris was appointed to two state board positions by Brown while they were in a relationship in the mid-1990s. At the time, Harris was 29 years old and working as a lawyer for the Alameda District Attorney's office, while Brown was 60 and serving as the powerful California Assembly Speaker.
Brown first appointed Harris to the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board in 1993, a position that paid $97,088 annually. After six months, Harris resigned from that role to take a new appointment by Brown to the California Medical Assistance Commission.
The CMAC position, which Harris held for five years, paid $99,000 per year. Harris reportedly earned over $400,000 in total during Brown's appointments to these state boards.
Records reviewed by the Daily Mail indicate that Harris was absent for 23 out of 111 CMAC meetings during her tenure. The report also claims that on some occasions, minutes show Harris arriving late after meetings had already begun.
CMAC was responsible for negotiating contracts with hospitals to limit costs for government-funded healthcare. The position required commissioners to meet twice per month, as it was not a full-time role.
Harris has previously defended her work on these state boards when questioned about them during her 2003 campaign for San Francisco District Attorney. In another instance, Harris forcefully responded to inquiries about the appointments, saying, "Well, I worked. I've worked my ass off for everything I have."
The resurfacing of details about Harris' appointments by Brown and her attendance record at CMAC meetings has reignited debate about potential impropriety and political patronage early in her career.
Brown himself acknowledged in a 2019 San Francisco Chronicle op-ed that he may have influenced Harris' career trajectory through these appointments. He wrote:
Yes, I may have influenced her career by appointing her to two state commissions when I was Assembly speaker.
However, Harris has consistently maintained that she earned her positions through hard work, pushing back against implications that her relationship with Brown unfairly advanced her career.
New information has raised questions about Kamala Harris' attendance at California Medical Assistance Commission meetings in the 1990s. Her appointments to state boards by Willie Brown while they were dating have faced renewed scrutiny. Harris has previously defended her work in these roles, while Brown acknowledged potentially influencing her career through the appointments.
