Fox News host Rachel Campos-Duffy recently shared perplexing comments about former Vice President Kamala Harris and her role as a stepparent during an on-air segment of the show “Outnumbered.” And one therapist has since emphasized that the host’s remarks are “harmful” to all stepparents.

During Tuesday’s segment of the Fox News show, Campos-Duffy was joined by a group of panelists who took turns criticizing Harris’ current tour for her new book, “107 Days.” Among the criticisms leveled at Harris was Campos-Duffy’s comment about the former Democratic presidential nominee being “so inauthentic” — especially as it relates to her role as a parent.

Campos-Duffy, who shares nine children with her husband, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, charged that Harris had “tried to convince everybody that she was ‘momala.’”

“When actually she inherited stepchildren, they were like 17 or 18, [unlike] all of us who have had little tiny kids — it just doesn’t count,” she said. “She’s just not authentic.”

It’s unclear why Campos-Duffy believes Harris had tried to “convince” the public that she was “momala.” Harris shared stories and discussed her family life in much the same way that any other parent running for public office does.

A representative for Fox News did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Harris wed former second gentleman Doug Emhoff in 2014. He shares two adult children, Cole, 31, and Ella, 26, with his ex-wife, film and TV producer Kerstin Emhoff. Harris, Doug Emhoff, Kerstin Emhoff and their children have all publicly talked about their love for their blended family and Harris’ important role as a stepparent.

A then-U.S. senator, Harris wrote an essay for Elle in 2019, in honor of Mother’s Day that year, opening up about her family life and what it was like becoming a stepmom. She talked about meeting Cole and Ella for the first time, describing them as “brilliant, talented, funny kids who have grown to be remarkable adults.” She said that she, Ella and Cole had all agreed at some point that they didn’t like the term “stepmom,” and that Ella and Cole came up with “momala” instead.

In the essay, Harris also discussed balancing the demands of parenthood after being sworn in as a U.S. senator in 2017, and her positive co-parenting relationship with Kerstin Emhoff, whom she described as a “dear friend” and an “incredible mother.”

Nonetheless, when Harris ran for president last year, she faced fresh scrutiny and waves of sexist attacks from the right for not having biological children — despite the fact that there are many reasons why a woman doesn’t have, or chooses not to have, kids.

Not to mention, Vice President JD Vance had once referred to Harris as one of the “childless cat ladies” running the country in 2021 during his bid for senate in Ohio.

Kerston Emhoff told the New York Times last year that the attacks against Harris over her parenting status were “baseless attacks.”

“For over 10 years, since Cole and Ella were teenagers, Kamala has been a co-parent with Doug and I,” she said at the time.

Alexandra Cromer, a licensed professional counselor with Thriveworks whose specialties include women’s issues, relationships, and divorce, told HuffPost that Campos-Duffy’s on-air criticism of Harris came across as “exclusionary” and “minimizing to stepparents everywhere.”

“I would say that it’s inappropriate to state that someone is excluded from the role of a parent for simply not being a biological parent and/or being a parent to the non-biological child ‘when they were little,‘” she said of the Fox News host’s remarks. “Her choice of words creates exclusions and isolations for stepparents and parents of non-biological children as her words state that parenthood is ‘earned.’”

There are so many ways to become a parent and parent figure in different stages of life, i.e. becoming a stepparent, adoption, foster care, having biological children, or raising a family member or close friend. Cromer emphasized that it’s “absolutely harmful” to suggest that people who become parents to children at various ages and for different reasons aren’t as “authentic” as people who raise children from a young age.

Cromer pointed out that Campos-Duffy’s remarks comparing Harris’ parenting journey to other parents who’ve raised “little tiny kids,” perpetuates “many false stereotypes that parents who enter into a child’s life at any other point than birth have no worth or have nothing to offer.”

“Not only is that simply not true, but there is empirical evidence that parental relationships are in no way mediated by biological status and entry into life of the child,” she said. “Her choice of words is absolutely harmful to listeners at home and poses a great risk to cause unnecessary feelings of shame and inadequacy.”

“The choice and circumstances in which people become parents is personal and situation-specific; however, those who make the choice to become a parent hold no less value,” she continued.

Cromer said it’s important not to minimize the role of a stepparent.

“It’s absolutely harmful to suggest that becoming a stepparent to older children is less meaningful,” she said, later adding, “We should be mindful that if a parenting situation is different or outside of your own experiences that it’s not deficient; different does not equal deficient.”

“A stepparent plays a critical role in a child’s life and has the potential to have a positive impact on their development at any and all [ages],” Cromer said. She also emphasized that children with stepparents get “introduced to new role models, have opportunities for more care and support and have another adult whom they can trust and have a healthy loving relationship with.”

And as for the years-long attacks Harris has received for not having biological children, Cromer said that it’s unfortunately “very common for women in their middle age and above to receive discrimination and shame for not having biological children.”

“This comes from a myriad of different reasons/sources, but women who do not follow societal norms pose a threat to the status quo,” she said. “Using feminist theory, we can examine a societal status quo or expectation for a woman to have children as something that she ‘should’ do, and a woman who acts and thinks independently from the status quo can be seen as ungovernable.”

Cromer said that women who are not compliant in “a heteronormative system established by men to have children” and to have them at a certain age are deemed “less controllable.”

“Ultimately, [the] shame conveyed by this message is harmful,” she said.

Fox News host Jessica Tarlov slammed a “disgusting lie” about her family that was posted on social media this week. And one licensed mental health counselor said that the attacks on Tarlov shed light on a common “deeply misogynistic” attack.

Tarlov, the resident Democrat on Fox News show “The Five,” responded to a post on X that accused her of infidelity.

“Jessica slept with her current husband (right) while still married to her first husband (left),” read the post from an X account called “Bad Hombre.” The post featured a photo of Tarlov with her husband, Brian McKenna, and one of their two children.

“Lollll absolutely not true,” Tarlov wrote. “But appreciate [you] covering my baby’s face – respectful even as you spread a disgusting lie.”

Tarlov faced waves of right-wing backlash after she called out the GOP on X on Thursday for purporting to champion “family values” amid news that Texas state Sen. Angela Paxton (R) filed for divorce from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Angela Paxton said in a statement that she filed for divorce after nearly four decades of marriage on “biblical grounds” and in light of “recent discoveries.”

Ken Paxton, who is currently campaigning in the Republican primary for a seat in the U.S. Senate, was previously accused of having an affair with a donor’s employee during his 2023 state impeachment trial, in which he was acquitted of corruption charges.

But Tarlov’s critique as a political commentator, suggesting that the Republican Party’s messaging on “family values” is riddled with hypocrisy, sparked crude, misogynistic and derogatory personal attacks directed at her and her romantic relationships.

Some X users responded to the liberal Fox News host by calling her a “cheating whore,” a “ho” and a “home wrecker,” among other disparaging attacks.

Hallie Kritsas, a licensed mental health counselor and therapist with Thriveworks who specializes in self-esteem, told HuffPost that the attacks on Tarlov serve as a “clear example of how women in the public eye, especially in politics or commentary, are often targeted in deeply gendered ways.”

“For women, especially those who are outspoken, often others undermine their credibility through personal or sexualized attacks,” she said.

Kritsas said that attacking women for being unfaithful in their relationships — whether it’s true or not — or criticizing them for having multiple sexual partners, seems to be a common line of attack that’s “deeply misogynistic.”

“This is especially as it is a move that works to discredit, shame or control them. These accusations seem to do little with the actual truth and more to do with reinforcing gendered power dynamics. It also punishes women for autonomy or any perceived independence,” she said.

Kritsas said that society tends to be harsher on women for both actual and perceived infidelity.

“And even when accusations are unfounded, women can still face intense judgment and shame in ways that men typically do not,” she said. “Culturally, it is expected that women are to be the emotional and moral anchors in relationships and to be loyal and nurturing. So when they ‘deviate,’ away from it, it can trigger a backlash in society.”

Overall, Kritsas explained that instances of infidelity with men tend to be “downplayed” or “normalized.” And that’s due to “a double standard that comes from longstanding gender norms and patriarchal ideas equating women’s value with her sexual behavior and loyalty.”

The imbalance in expectations among men and women is reflected in the way society seeks to control women’s bodies and their choices, she added.

Fox News host Jesse Watters recently made a perplexing quip about Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s (D-Texas) personal life.

During a segment of “The Five” on Thursday night, panelist Emily Compagno complained that Crockett had criticized the Trump administration’s immigration policies and its dehumanizing rhetoric surrounding immigrants during a hearing on Capitol Hill the day prior.

Watters then jumped in and attempted to take a swipe at the Democratic representative, claiming that he “researched” her and learned about her dating life.

“She’s single, she’s 43, she’s never been married,” he said about his findings on Crockett, who’s 44.

“I’m trying to figure out what makes her tick. I think I can set her up with someone. I know a guy in D.C. — he’s white, hopefully that’s not a problem — but he will make her happy,” he scoffed. “And maybe then she will not hate everybody else besides herself so much.”

“And it would be my pleasure to do it,” he added.

Watters was slammed on X, formerly Twitter, for making the misogynistic quip about Crockett, suggesting that her, or any woman’s happiness, depends on marriage. Not to mention, Crockett’s personal dating life is, of course, none of his business.

Kari J. Winter, a professor of American studies at the University at Buffalo whose expertise includes gender, feminism, race and class, said that Watters targeting Crockett — who often faces racist and anti-Black attacks online — just proves one thing about a lot of her critics:

″[They] target her with racist, misogynistic hate speech not only because they embrace sexist white supremacist values, but also because they are desperate to avoid responding to her points and policies,” she said.

“Trump’s anti-immigrant actions are illegal and unconscionable. What can his sycophants say? They have nothing. Therefore, they are 100% focused on riling up rather than informing their audience,” Winter said. “They throw out every vile, outrageous insult they can think of in order to steal our attention away from the Trump administration’s alarming, illegal, democracy-undermining actions.”

Winter added that Crockett is “whip-smart, courageous and eloquent” and that the congresswoman “understands that a just legal system is the foundation of democracy.”

Monica Cwynar, a licensed clinical social worker with Thriveworks, who specializes in trauma and coping skills, said that as a Black therapist, she believes “personal attacks, especially against women of color like Congresswoman Crockett, detract from the real issues at hand and reflect entrenched sexism and racism in our public discourse.”

“Such remarks are not only unproductive but also deeply harmful, as they overshadow important policy discussions and contribute to a culture where personal denigration is prioritized over substantive critique,” she continued.

Cwynar said that comments like Watters’ work to diminish “the voices of women in politics” and reinforce “damaging stereotypes.”

And even if Watters made the remark about Crockett in jest, making those types of comments about a woman’s relationship status — especially in a public forum — “reinforces harmful societal norms” and “perpetuates a misogynistic narrative that suggests [a woman’s] worth is tied to having a man in their lives,” Cwynar said.

In general, negative remarks about women being single can “lead to emotional harm, instilling feelings of inadequacy and shame,” she later noted, adding that “society often imposes expectations that equate a woman’s success with marriage and motherhood, which can significantly diminish her sense of self-worth and autonomy.”

Speaking about Watters’ dig at Crockett on “The Five” specifically, Cwynar said that his commentary “undermines the diverse ways women can lead fulfilling lives.”

Winter believes this is all part of Watters’ plan.

“Jesse Watters is a merchant of outrage whose career as a commentator is based on grabbing our attention by spewing shocking, hateful speech,” she said. “I’m guessing that he searches for racist, sexist stereotypes so that he has an easy stockpile to trot out day after day.”

“Perhaps the only way for people to escape from the right-wing cesspool of hate is to turn our backs and walk away,” she added. “We need to choose to focus our attention on the people, issues and work that we truly care about.”