Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was asked about the allegations of sexual assault against presumed Democratic nominee Joe Biden, brought to the public by former aide to then-Senator Biden, Tara Reade. Reade’s claims are gaining national attention, and the evidence and corroboration present represent a damning case against the former vice president. Still, Speaker Pelosi stands by Biden:
CNN's Alisyn Camerota calls out Nancy Pelosi after she says Joe Biden has addressed the sexual assault allegations: "He has not"pic.twitter.com/aIsNKMfpXX
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) April 30, 2020
PELOSI on the BIDEN allegations: She said she respects the Me Too movement, but “There is also due process, and the fact that Joe Biden is Joe BIden, there’s been statements from his … former employees who ran his offices ... that there was never any record of this."
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) April 30, 2020
Speaker Pelosi dismissed criticism of the double standard:
Q: "How do Democrats square they're essentially standing by Biden but they're using a comparatively different standard with Kavanaugh when you demanded an investigation on Justice Kavanaugh--?"
— The Hill (@thehill) April 30, 2020
Pelosi: "I respect your question and I don't need a lecture or a speech." pic.twitter.com/RRzfiiMEiK
Called out on hypocritical response to Biden allegations, Nancy Pelosi responds “I don’t need a lecture” pic.twitter.com/msa6mIlrpk
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) April 30, 2020
Speaker Pelosi gets one crucial detail wrong in her defense of Biden: the former vice president has not addressed Reade’s claims. Biden’s campaign has gone on the offensive and vehemently denied Reade’s allegations, and has even distributed instructive talking points to surrogates for questions about the situation, but Biden himself has not said a word about Reade’s claims.
Biden’s advisors have kept him hidden — quite literally — from having to confront these allegations directly; the campaign claims that high-profile news organizations investigated Reade’s claims and that Biden was exonerated from their findings, but The New York Times and Washington Post disagree:
From the Editorial Board:
— Washington Post Opinions (@PostOpinions) April 30, 2020
Joe Biden himself should address the Tara Reade allegations and release relevant records https://t.co/FwosLGNQRl
A New York Times spokesperson says Biden campaign talking points “inaccurately” suggest that the Times investigation found that Tara Reade’s allegation “did not happen.” Response to this scoop from @rubycramer @RosieGray https://t.co/ZUD6f2WSEE pic.twitter.com/LNaHvH0ZxF
— Jonathan Easley (@JonEasley) April 29, 2020
Keeping with the trend of other female Democrats, Speaker Pelosi’s solidarity with Biden and dismissal of Reade’s claims is diametrically opposed to her stance on Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s claims against Brett Kavanaugh, which were far less substantial and completely uncorroborated:
It took great courage for Dr. Christine Blasey Ford to come forward with her story. The American people are owed a thorough investigation of the grave & credible allegations against Brett Kavanaugh. RETWEET if you agree Senate Republicans must #PostponeTheVote
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 18, 2018
Dr. Blasey Ford, we are with you. #BelieveSurvivors
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) September 27, 2018
This morning, I took time to watch Christine Blasey Ford’s deeply moving opening statement. Thank you for your bravery, Dr. Ford. #BelieveSurvivors #KavanaughHearings pic.twitter.com/3IzD4TsVCU
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 27, 2018
Speaker Pelosi also fails to mention that any and all documents related to Biden’s 36 years in the Senate, when the alleged assault is said to have occurred, are under lock and key at the University of Delaware; Biden donated the records to his alma mater in 2011, and they are set to be released 2 years after he leaves “public life.”
If Speaker Pelosi, among other Democrats, believes that the former vice president is innocent of Reade’s claims, why not encourage Biden to unseal the records? If there is nothing damning, whether to support Reade’s claims or otherwise, within the records, then there is no downside to releasing the documents to the public.
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