After seeing Vice President Kamala Harris laugh during a press conference in Poland when asked about Ukrainian refugees, Iuliia Mendel, former press secretary to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, tweeted it would be a "tragedy" if she were ever elected president.
Mendel quickly deleted the tweet, the Daily Mail reported, but she was far from the only critic of the vice president whose penchant for nervous laughter at inappropriate times has provided cringeworthy moments in the past — as well as fodder for her political opponents.
"It would be a tragedy if this woman won the presidency," read Mendel's tweet, which can still be read on screen grabs. She served as Zelenskyy's press secretary from June 2019 until July 2021.
Harris was holding a joint press conference on Thursday with Polish President Andrzej Duda when a reporter asked the two leaders about the United States accepting Ukrainian refugees or finding other ways to help ease the pressure on Poland, which has accepted more than 1.5 million of those fleeing the brutal attacks from Vladimir Putin's Russian forces.
Harris and Duda then looked at each other as if they expected the other to respond, the New York Post reported.
"OK," Harris finally began, eliciting a laugh from Duda and the press.
"A friend in need is a friend indeed," Harris said, laughing at the comment.
Duda then stepped in and said that he had asked Harris to help speed the process of allowing Ukrainian refugees with family in the United States to be able to move to the U.S. and stay with them.
"Only Kamala Harris would find it appropriate to laugh when talking about the topic of Ukrainian Refugees," tweeted Benny Johnson of Turning Point USA.
"Kamala Harris has been very consistent during her live remarks with Poland's leader," tweeted former Donald Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos. "She is awkwardly laughing. Again. Discussing refugees is no laughing matter. Why she laughs at this is deranged."
Harris' odd comment and boisterous laughter at such a serious subject reminded many of previous instances where she had made similar responses.
In August, Harris cut off a question from reporters about the Biden administration's botched withdrawal from Afghanistan by saying, "Hold on, hold on — slow down, everybody," then laughing loudly.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also slammed Harris in June for laughing after being asked about the southern border crisis.
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