Democrats are descending into disarray as their presumptive presidential nominee battles allegations of sexual assault far more credible than anything ever thrown at Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, whose unsubstantiated allegations prompted calls for the Justice’s nomination to be withdrawn and subsequent pleas for impeachment.
In March, former Biden Senate staffer, Tara Reade, came public with accusations that the former vice president forcibly kissed her and penetrated her with his fingers in a congressional hallway in 1993. Since coming forward, Reade’s story has been corroborated by multiple witnesses, and a 1993 tape of CNN’s “Larry King Live” where her mother called into the program that matches Reade’s description of events more than 25 years ago.
Biden denied the accusations during an interview with MSNBC on Friday, marking the first time reporters have actually confronted the former vice president on the charges after more than a month that the claims were made.
Until recently, most Democrats had remained silent as their presidential candidate faces the accusations of sexual misconduct mirroring charges that have come to define the era of the Me Too movement, despite having propped up uncorroborated claims from Christine Blasey Ford to derail Kavanaugh’s path to the Supreme Court and in turn, destroying the man himself.
Ford, who was never able to even prove that the two had ever met let alone produce a single witness to support her story, was heralded by #BelieveSurvivors women’s groups, legacy media, and Democrats as a hero for women while remaining deafeningly silent when it comes to far more credible charges against one of their own.
As Biden searches for a running mate amid the accusations, here’s what the same people who praised Ford’s testimony are saying about Reade so not to spoil their chances in the veepstakes:
Stacey Abrams
Abrams is taking a break from her imaginary duties as governor of Georgia to break from tradition by publicly campaigning for the number two spot.
After Biden finally addressed the allegations head on, Abrams came out with a lackluster statement paling in comparison to what she said about Ford.
“I am pleased that the Vice President directly addressed these allegations and by how he addressed them. Women and all people should be heard, and they deserve a safe space and process through which they can come forward,” Abrams said.
On Tuesday, Abrams offered a more passionate defense on CNN.
“I believe Joe Biden,” Abrams said. “I believe that he is a person who has demonstrated his love of family, of our community, has been made perfectly clear through his work as a congressional leader and as an American leader. I know Joe Biden and I think he’s telling the truth and this did not happen.”
That’s a sharp turnaround from when Abrams said “I believe women,” in 2018.
After the courageous and compelling testimony from Dr. Christine Blasey Ford yesterday, it is shameful that Kavanaugh's nomination is being rushed forward.
I believe women, and I believe survivors of violence always deserve to be supported and to have their voices heard. https://t.co/rtT1PQr4Zq
— Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) September 28, 2018
Kamala Harris
California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris fared no better in the sweepstakes of Me Too hypocrisy to land a top spot on the Democratic ticket.
“I believe her,” Harris said of Ford’s allegations in 2018. “Anybody who comes forward at this point to be prepared to testify in the United States Senate against someone who’s being nominated to one of the most powerful positions in the United States government, that takes an extraordinary amount of courage.”
According to Harris, simply testifying before Congress should make any allegations inherently truthful, no matter the evidence. Let’s not forget that Harris used to be the attorney general of California.
After the Senate confirmation hearings, Harris said her biggest fear was “that there will be people who will decide that if they speak out it doesn’t matter, and will feel deflated by what happened in a way that causes them to recede.”
But now, Harris is coming to Biden’s defense.
“The Joe Biden I know is somebody who really has fought for women and empowerment of women and for women’s equality and rights,” Harris told the San Francisco Chronicle last month. This is the same senator who also called for Kavanaugh’s impeachment on the one year anniversary of Ford’s testimony.
“If we want to live in a country where women are believed and given access to the justice they deserve, we must roll up our sleeves and get to work holding our leaders accountable,” Harris wrote in Elle Magazine.
Meanwhile, Reade said on The Hill’s “Rising” she had approached the California senator’s campaign with her allegations, but was ignored.
Elizabeth Warren
Another top contender in the vice presidential veepstakes, Massachusetts Sen. Warren joined Harris in calls to impeach Kavanaugh a year after Ford’s Senate testimony and is no less guilty of employing a blatant double-standard when it comes to the charges brought against Biden, where Warren has said zilch.
I still believe Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. And like the man who appointed him, Brett Kavanaugh should be impeached.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) September 28, 2019
Reade also says she was ignored by the Warren campaign prior to going public with her story.
Amy Klobuchar
Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar was insistent on an FBI investigation into Kavanaugh’s alleged history of abuse against Ford, but now that she’s in the running for vice president, a rushed inconclusive New York Times investigation seems to have done the trick.
“I agree with Vice President Biden about this, that all women in these cases have the right to be heard and have their claims reviewed,” Klobuchar said. “And in this case…there was a thorough review by the New York Times. And I think that’s very important to have, especially involving public figures.”
If Klobuchar wasn’t blinded by partisan self-interest, maybe she’d be fighting just as hard for an FBI investigation of Reade’s claims.
“They’re afraid of what they’re going to find out,” Klobuchar scoffed at a potential federal probe into Kavanaugh’s passed conduct.
Of course, the FBI investigation that eventually took place in 2018 exonerated Kavanaugh.
Gretchen Whitmer
A newcomer to the national spotlight for implementing the strictest state lockdowns in the entire country, Whitmer is now on the shortlist having skipped the Democratic primary to be considered as Biden’s running mate.
Whitmer, while she was less of a national figure a year and a half ago, still made it clear where she stood on the allegations lodged against Kavanaugh.
I believe Dr. Ford
— Governor Gretchen Whitmer (@GovWhitmer) September 27, 2018
Now Whitmer, eyeing a place on the ticket, is rejecting the idea that Reade’s accusations bear any kind of credibility.
“The Joe Biden I know, these stories are inconsistent with what I know and what I’ve seen, in terms of work that he’s done to support women,” Whitmer told ABC.
Nancy Pelosi
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi officially gave Biden her endorsement on Thursday and told CNN on Tuesday she was “satisfied” with Biden’s silence over Reade.
While not on the list of potential running mates, Pelosi’s hypocrisy is worth the scrutiny.
“Well I have great sympathy for any women who brings forth an allegation. I’m a big strong supporter of the Me Too Movement. I think it’s been a great contribution to our country,” Pelosi said. “I do support Joe Biden. I’m satisfied with how he responded. I know him, I was proud to endorse him on Monday… So I’m satisfied with that.”
In 2018 however, Pelosi described Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the nation’s highest court as “a profoundly heartbreaking day for women, girls, and families.”
“Courageous women risked their safety and well-being to speak truth about this nomination,” Pelosi said in a statement on the day of Kavanaugh’ confirmation.
Here’s the rest of what Pelosi had to say that day, emphasis ours:
Tens of thousands more joined them to share their own harrowing stories of sexual assault, at great personal risk. Yet, Senate Republicans chose to send a clear message to all women: do not speak out, and if you do – do not expect to be heard, believed, or respected.
Unless you’re accusing someone with the best chance at ousting President Donald Trump of course, Pelosi promises you.
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton has no interest in being vice president, but her notable absence on the issue still speaks volumes.
Clinton endorsed Biden on Tuesday, telling her former colleague in the Obama administration that he had her full support without making one mention of the new developments in the Reade allegations to come the day before when two women came forward to corroborate Reade’s claims.
“I am thrilled to be part of your campaign,” Clinton said.
Meanwhile, here’s this gem from 2015:
Hillary to every survivor of sexual assault: You have the right to be heard and believed. We're with you.https://t.co/HPJ2gPPwMs
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 15, 2015
And in 2018, Clinton said Reade ought to have the “benefit of the doubt” over unsourced rape accusations.
