After a week of silence from former Vice President Joe Biden’s allies, surrounding graphic sexual misconduct allegations made by former Biden aide Tara Reade, one of Biden’s most mainstream surrogates spoke to the claims. Actress Alyssa Milano, a prominent Democratic activist and Biden supporter, says that she is standing by Biden:
There is something to the idea that people are going to weaponize #metoo for political gain. Just look at the replies here and look to see who those accounts are supporting in the primary. There always needs to be a thorough vetting of accusations.
— Alyssa Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) April 6, 2020
A high-profile #MeToo activist, Milano has been at the forefront of the “Believe All Women” movement, which back-burners fundamental aspects of our justice system, most notably due process. Milano pivoted her stance on this nonsense legal standard in this interview with Andy Cohen:
“We have to, sort of, societally change that mindset to ‘Believing Women,’ but that does not mean at the expense of not giving men their due process,” Milano says in the interview.
Just a year and a half ago, Milano led the charge against the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh on account of Dr. Ford’s allegations against him. With no regard for due process or nuance of any sort, Milano piled onto the smear campaign against Kavanaugh and demanded that senators vote no on his confirmation. Before testimony had even ended, Milano concluded that Kavanaugh’s eventual confirmation would “institutionalize sexual violence.” During Justice Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, which set a new precedent for partisanship during Supreme Court hearings, Milano championed the “Believe All Women” standard for evidence, which violates basic tenets of our judicial system:
This 180-degree spin from Milano represents the hypocrisy within the Democratic Party when it comes to handling sexual assault or misconduct allegations. The notion that Democrats look the other way when one of their own is accused, in this case the presumed nominee for president, is not a GOP talking point. Democrats offer due process only to their own, while Republicans are not afforded the same Constitutional right.
Milano’s defense of Biden, without a fair assessment, embodies the epitome of hypocrisy, but also undermines Tara Reade’s story. The correct, humane way to handle such heinous allegations, no matter the ideological bent of the accuser or accusee, is to hear both sides equally. As with any other crime, evidentiary support and witness corroboration must play a role in the handling of allegations, and before someone’s life and reputation is ruined with baseless accusations. Senate Republicans demonstrated this gracefully in the fall of 2018 during Justice Kavanaugh’s confirmation: both Dr. Ford and Kavanaugh were granted the ability to testify, and both evidence and witnesses were taken into consideration.
Despite claiming to be the “party of women,” Democrats and liberal activists like Milano continue to demonstrate that they do not actually care about women who have stories to tell, but rather want to ensure that their ideological agenda is furthered.