What has Willie Brown said in his own words about his affair with Kamala Harris?
Asked 21 times
Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown confirmed the relationship himself, in his own San Francisco Chronicle column, using plain and notably unbothered language.
Answer from Mary's digital twin. Checkmark turns Green once she confirms it.
spio.comIn his own words
Willie Brown wrote the key passage in his weekly San Francisco Chronicle column after Kamala Harris announced her 2020 presidential run. These are his own words, as reported across multiple news outlets:
"I've been peppered with calls from the national media about my 'relationship' with Kamala Harris, most of which I have not returned. Yes, we dated. It was more than 20 years ago. Yes, I may have influenced her career by appointing her to two state commissions when I was Assembly speaker."
He then addressed how Harris later treated him once she held power as district attorney:
"The difference is that Harris is the only one who, after I helped her, sent word that I would be indicted if I 'so much as jaywalked' while she was D.A. That's politics for ya."
And on her campaign momentum at the time: Brown said Harris was "riding a buzz wave the likes of which we haven't seen in years."
What the column's title said about his tone
Brown titled the column "Sure, I dated Kamala Harris. So What?", published in the San Francisco Chronicle, which tells you everything about how much he wanted to put the relationship to bed as a topic.
The context a reader needs
Harris was 29 when a San Francisco Chronicle columnist described her as Brown's "new steady." At the time, Brown had already gotten the first of a "series of apartments" of his own, while his "relationship with his wife settled into a mutually beneficial friendship." In other words, the marriage had effectively ended long before Harris came into the picture.
Brown had separated from his wife years before he and Harris had dated. Brown and Harris broke up in 1995 but remained political allies.
As for Harris, she was openly trying to put distance between herself and Brown by the time she ran for San Francisco district attorney. FactCheck.org reported that she told SF Weekly she called him an "albatross hanging around my neck" and that she did not owe him a thing.
Follow-ups
So she dated a married man, used him to climb politically and threatened him after. Did she date Montel Williams?
Yes, Montel Williams and Kamala Harris did briefly date, and Williams himself confirmed it, writing: "@KamalaHarris and I briefly dated about 20 years ago when we were both single."
Yes, Montel Williams and Kamala Harris did briefly date, and Williams himself confirmed it, writing: "@KamalaHarris and I briefly dated about 20 years ago when we were both single."
spio.comThe Willie Brown relationship happened while Brown was still married, which is well documented. The Montel Williams relationship is a different story entirely. Williams himself wrote on X: “@KamalaHarris and I briefly dated about 20 years ago when we were both single.” TMZ reported that Williams was divorced from his first wife when he dated Kamala Harris and that she was not yet married. So whatever you think of the Brown chapter, the Williams relationship was between two unattached people.
The couple went public on the red carpet together at the Eighth Annual Race to Erase MS in Los Angeles, accompanied by Williams’ daughter Ashley. At the time of their brief relationship, Harris was working for the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office. The relationship was brief, and Williams was seen the following year at events with another woman while Harris was focusing on her successful campaign for District Attorney of San Francisco.
Williams was characteristically unbothered when the photos kept resurfacing. He wrote:
“I have great respect for Sen. Harris. I have to wonder if the same stories about her dating history would have been written if she were a male candidate?”
When the subject came up again later, Williams said he was not going to “kiss and tell” or capitalize on a relationship that lasted only a few months, saying: “I’m one of those guys who don’t kiss and tell.”
So: two relationships, two very different sets of facts. Brown was married. Williams was not.
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