Storm clouds continued to follow the Conservative campaign after a CBC report late Wednesday night said one of Harper’s closest advisers is being sent back to Ottawa.

Campaign manager Jenni Byrne could be the target of Harper’s anger over the decision to remove two candidates who made it through the party’s screening process, which she was supposed to oversee, CBC News reports.

But Conservative party insiders told CTV Wednesday that Byrne remains the party’s campaign manager and has Harper’s full support.

Byrne is described as a polarizing figure, with some defending her record as a competent strategist and organizer. Others say her hyper-partisan instincts have resulted in Harper being poorly advised on the Syrian refugee crisis in particular.

“(Byrne) speaks to the worst instincts in Harper,” said another Conservative.

Byrne’s decision to travel on and off with Harper on the road rather than manage the campaign full time from headquarters in Ottawa is also being raised repeatedly as a bad idea — it’s hard to see the big picture from inside the election-bus bubble.

Her brittle relationship with campaign chairman Guy Giorno is another factor in the bellyaching behind the scenes. Some Conservatives are loyal to Giorno, while others say Byrne is unfairly bearing the brunt of the blame.

“If Ray (Novak) is back in the war room and Harper needs someone with him he can trust, Jenni (Byrne) would fill that role,” said an Ottawa insider.

One source said cabinet ministers are being encouraged by party stalwarts to speak to Harper about how the campaign can be helped.

Regional organizers and ministers are not being consulted regularly nor drawn into the loop on issues as they arise in the campaign, the source said. The assessment is one of a general lack of nimbleness, which means Harper’s rivals have been able to frame parts of the electoral debate.

“It’s down to the bunker,” said another, noting Harper has made the circle of advisers around him even tighter than previous elections.

One Conservative went so far as to call it “open mutiny,” saying many Tories are simply not pitching in to help with the campaign out of disenchantment.

With files from CBC News, The Canadian Press, CTV