Kamala Harris criticized for response after reporter confronts her about Afghanistan crisis

Vice President Kamala Harris generated criticism Sunday after she responded to a recent question about the Afghanistan crisis by laughing and claiming the Biden administration "couldn't have a higher priority right now."

What happened?

After embarking on her Southeast Asia tour, Harris addressed a gaggle of reporters on the airport tarmac, cutting off a reporter who began to ask her about the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan.

"What's your response to reports of Americans—" the reporter began, speaking over the sound of jet engines.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on," Harris said, cutting off the reporter. "Slow down, everybody," Harris added, afterward letting out a big laugh.

"I want to talk about two things. First, Afghanistan— We couldn't have a higher priority right now," Harris said after finishing her laugh. "And in particular high priority is making sure that we safely evacuate American citizens, Afghans who worked with us, Afghans at risk, including women and children, and that is one of our highest if not the highest priority right now."

Because the reporter was never allowed to finish her question, it's not clear what she was going to ask Harris specifically. However, it sounded like she was going to ask Harris about the Americans trapped in Afghanistan.

What was her response?

Critics panned Harris not only for her inopportune laughing, but claiming the Afghanistan crisis is the administration's highest priority while she spends the week in Southeast Asia.

• "'We couldn't have a higher property right now. That's why I'm going to board this plane and depart this self inflicted catastrophe,'" one person mocked.
• "Higher priority, yeah as she leaves the country," another person said.
• "No higher priority.. which is why I'm in Singapore," one person mocked.
• "I'm not a fan of hers but I think she does this whenever she gets nervous. Ask her a tough question and she does that cackle," one person observed.
• "Whether true or not, she does just exude this sense of not caring about anything outside herself," another person noted.
• "Serious issue and she cackles," one person criticized.
• "If her highest priority 'right' is getting American's out of Afghanistan, then why is she LEAVING THE COUNTRY when our American's need her in DC doing her job in trying to do everything possible to get them out?" another person said.
• "There are a of names that I would like to call her but then I will get a phone call from my mom," Fox News' Lisa Boothe said.
• "What's so funny? Absolutely nothing!" another person said.

Harris' Southeast Asia tour began in Singapore on Sunday. She will travel to Vietnam on Tuesday before departing the region for the U.S. on Thursday.