Kamala Harris faces plagiarism allegations over 2009 co-authored book, Internet says 'just shameful'

WASHINGTON, DC: Vice President Kamala Harris faces plagiarism accusations as multiple sections of her 2009 book 'Smart on Crime' are reportedly similar or identical to content from other published works.

Harris, then serving as San Francisco's district attorney, wrote the book promoting a reform-driven approach to crime prosecution with the help of ghostwriter Joan O’C Hamilton.

Christopher Rufo unveils plagiarism claims against Kamala Harris

Hamilton expressed surprise to The New York Post when contacted for comment on Monday, October 14, regarding the alleged plagiarism.

Conservative activist Christopher Rufo made allegations on Monday, linking them to an investigation by Austrian "plagiarism hunter" Stefan Weber. Rufo shared screenshots on platform X, highlighting five instances where the book's wording closely resembled that of other sources.

In every case, the alleged source material precedes the publication date of Kamala Harris' book.

The five passages presented side-by-side suggest that Harris might have appropriated language from a 2008 Associated Press article, a Wikipedia entry from the same year, a 2000 Bureau of Justice Assistance report, a 2004 Urban Institute report, and a 2007 John Jay College of Criminal Justice press release.

In at least two cases, the sources of the original wording are acknowledged in footnotes, but without quotation marks enclosing the seemingly borrowed phrases. In other cases, such as with the Urban Institute report, the passages seem to be completely unattributed.

“Oh gosh,” Harris' ghostwriter spoke to The Post by phone shortly after the publication of the allegations.

“I haven’t seen anything,” she added. “I’m afraid I can’t talk to you right now, though, I’m in the middle of something. Let me go try to figure that out.”

Stefan Weber's report uncovers additional issues in Kamala Harris' book

A report authored by Weber and disseminated by Rufo highlighted a multitude of additional problems found within the book.

“Kamala Harris fabricated a source reference, inventing a nonexistent page number. The self-promotional content from Goodwill Industries was copied verbatim without citing the source (Goodwill Industries was her ‘primary partner’ on in [sic] the ‘Back on Track’ program),” Weber wrote.

He added, “In many other instances, even when a source was cited with a footnote, the text was directly copied and pasted without using quotation marks. Quotation marks would have been the most transparent and honest approach, also in non-academic books."

"Further signs of dishonesty may be evident when sources were copied but specific details were altered, such as replacing a Subway store owner with a sandwich shop clerk (p. 124) or highlighting Southeast Asia in the context of the US gang problem (p. 184),” he concluded.

Harris campaign spokesman James Singer stated, “This is a book that’s been out for 15 years, and the vice president clearly cited sources and statistics in footnotes and endnotes throughout.”

Allegations of plagiarism can be career-ending for journalists and academics, yet politicians have weathered such storms before.

A prime example is the retiring President Biden, who admitted to plagiarizing a paper in his first year of law school and, during his 1987 presidential campaign, used the family history and public statements of British politician Neil Kinnock without proper attribution.

Internet slams Kamala Harris

As the news of Kamala Harris' plagiarism allegations emerged online, users began to respond.

A user said, "LOL! Of course she is a plagiarist! She's a Marxist Commie and has never had her own original thought or organically created anything of value. She is the opposite of what it means to be an American."

Another added, "She’s never had a real thought of her own."

A third commented, "Is anyone surprised Kamala did this? Joe Biden plagiarized. They both stole ideas from president Trump and used them for themselves. Neither has an original idea in their body."

"‘Smart on crime’ but not smart enough to write your own book. Or just cite where you got the passage from," said a critic.

A person commented, "It's no surprise since she's in liar's mode most of the time."

Another wrote, "Oh no, this is terrible Well, I never thought that she was genuine Even with her words today, do not feel authentic."

A user said, "Joe Biden was forced to drop out of the race in 1987 because he got caught plagiarizing. Kamala should do the same. Just shameful."

 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.