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THE WOMAN WHO accused Joe Biden of sexually assaulting her in 1993 called on him to drop out of the US presidential race, saying she’d take a polygraph about the alleged encounter if he would.
Tara Reade said in March that Biden, the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, sexually assaulted her in a Capitol Hill corridor 27 years ago when she was a 29-year-old aide in the then-senator’s office.
The accusation is the biggest imbroglio of Biden’s presidential campaign. The candidate has denied wrongdoing.
Megyn Kelly / TwitterMK EXCLUSIVE: #TaraReade responds to #JoeBiden; calls for him to drop out pic.twitter.com/jxHAUYaWVU
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) May 7, 2020
“Joe Biden, please step forward and be held accountable. You should not be running on character for the president of the United States,” Reade told journalist Megyn Kelly in a clip released Thursday.
“You want him to withdraw?” asks Kelly, a former Fox News anchor and NBC talk show host.
“I wish he would, but he won’t,” Reade said, adding: “I think it’s a little late” for an apology.
It was Reade’s first on-camera interview since Biden, 77, released a statement on Friday saying the incident “never happened.”
The interview also comes as new written evidence from the 1990s emerged showing Reade — who has not produced the complaint she apparently filed with a congressional personnel office in 1993 — had told her ex-husband that she was sexually harassed while working for Biden.
The 1996 court document, obtained by the San Luis Obispo Tribune, does not say Biden committed the harassment, nor does it mention Reade’s more recent and serious allegations of sexual assault.
Reade’s then-husband, Theodore Dronen, wrote in the court declaration that Reade had told him about “a problem she was having at work regarding sexual harassment, in US Senator Joe Biden’s office.”
Megyn Kelly / TwitterMK EXCLUSIVE: Will Tara Reade go under oath or take a polygraph? pic.twitter.com/aBXohhg14n
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) May 7, 2020
‘Not a criminal’
Reade, now 56, alleged in March that Biden pinned her against a wall, put his hands “down my skirt” and violated her.
Reade’s public account evolved over time. In early 2019, she was among multiple women who accused Biden not of assault but of touching them inappropriately, or in ways that made them feel uncomfortable.
She has since presented a more serious claim of assault.
Biden’s deputy campaign manager released a statement yesterday challenging some of Reade’s assertions.
“More and more inconsistencies keep emerging,” Kate Bedingfield said, according to The Washington Post.
“Women… must be able to come forward and share their stories without fear of retribution or harm,” she said.
At the same time, we can never sacrifice the truth. And the truth is that these allegations are false and that the material that has been presented to back them up, under scrutiny, keeps proving their falsity.
Reade said she would “absolutely” speak under oath about what happened. Asked if she would take a polygraph test, she said such requests would set a poor precedent for survivors of violence.
“I will take one if Joe Biden takes one,” Reade said. “But I am not a criminal.”
Reade in the past has publicly expressed support for Bernie Sanders, the progressive candidate who quit the Democratic nomination race in April and endorsed Biden.
American voters are divided on the alleged assault.
According to a Monmouth University poll released Wednesday, 37% said the accusation is probably true, 32% said it’s probably not true, and 31% were undecided.
The same poll shows support for Biden for president rising from 48% in March to 50% today.
Support for President Donald Trump, Biden’s November election rival, slid from 45% in March to 41% now, likely due to his response to the coronavirus crisis.
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Lefties are dodging this big time after their persecution if Judge Kavanugh .. Where’s the Me Too movement on this one
@Maurice O Neill: Their double standards are on show for the world to see and they know it, hence the silence. They’re hoping it just all goes away.
Rose McGowan is about the only figure head from the movement with any shred of decency or honour. The rest were simply using ‘Me Too’ as a political tool against the other side.
@Will: So True.. Even our media here in Ireland has dodged it
@Maurice O Neill: What were you saying about the women that were accusing Brett of sexual assault ? Oh, wait, you believe Tara Reade, & not those women that accused Brett.. you were always adorable Finbar/Lin/Cormac etc etc
@Maurice O Neill: The Irish Times and Independent have run numerous articles on this in the last week. RTE has covered it. You are commenting on an article about it right here. How has the media dodged it? Typical right wing rubbish. Too foolish to see the truth when it’s staring you in the face.
@Maurice O Neill: saying that the media has dodged reporting about something on the comments section of an article about it. I couldn’t even make that up. On an up note, the trump supporters should find it easier to vote for Biden now that he’s being accused of sexual misconduct, that seems to be their thing.
@Tom Doyle: Go back to bed will ya.. You are completely missing my point.. I am on about those on the left and how they lack any consistency when it comes to these allegations
@Dell: its more about the different treatment received by the accusers & alleged perpetrators in both cases & the way the stories are framed. Did you notice a difference depending on the political leanings of the alleged perpetrators?
@Philip Kavanagh: When it came to the Judge the same level of balanced reporting was not applied
@Seamus Mac: yes, when people accused trump they had their characters and past judged and brought up in every trash newspaper and media channel that supports him. Is that what you mean?
@Maurice O Neill: First you say that the media is dodging the story, now you’re saying that they are not applying the same reporting standards. How much disinfectant did you inject?
@Maurice O Neill: i totally understand the point that you are trying to make but why don’t you say the exact same thing about the “pro life” peeps that were defending Kavanaugh ? You’re the only one that I see so far..;)
@Maurice O Neill: I hope you were this upset when 26 women accused Trump of sexual assault and rape but somehow I doubt it.
@Tom Doyle: Pro Life ?
@Maurice O Neill: “Pro Life ?” Exactly! First time that I’ve ever agreed with you on here ..
@Seamus Mac: either way the allies act the same
@Maurice O Neill: lefties hate Joe Biden. He is a republican. You are referring to the Democrats. They are a neo liberal centre right party with slightly better views on reproduction rights than the republicans. They still support war, corporate lobbying, corrupting unions and globalisation.
@Maurice O Neill: Trump donor represents Joe Biden accuser Tara Reade http://www.breakingnews.ie/world/trump-donor-represents-joe-biden-accuser-tara-reade-998373.html?utm_source=iosapp&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=sharebutton
@Maurice O Neill: Poor Mo, you dont know your arse from your elbow. You’ve practically gone around in one big circle while trying desperately to appear intelligent. Wonders never cease to amaze me here in the journal comments section. Tumpernazis abound without a cause to support. #metoo
@Will: ha ha Rose McGowan totally bastion of sanity
@Maurice O Neill:
Right this is simple.
She has to goto the police and file a complaint with a sworn statement. Police can ask to interview Biden (under oath with a lawyer Present ) and then the Police can investigate (discreetly).
They can the issue a statement clearing his name or issuing charges…
Then the same think will happen for Trump 25+ times… Trump will give 25 interviews as well…
Now that is fair…
@Maurice O Neill: Better read what Me Too and other women groups wrote about this. …. Pity but this lady is not creable. … Btw. ….. It’s a setup….. It’s to bring the topic back to light…. In few weeks time Joe will take polygraph test.. and than the pressure will be on Trump to do the same.
How is Biden the best the Democrats can do?
@Garret Fawl: How is trump the best that the repubs can do?
@KilkennyProud: did you see the 2016 Republican candidates? They were awful.
Like the Democrats, the Republicans don’t put any good (young) choices forward (like Tom Cotton, Josh Hawley). Hopefully they make a good choice next time.
@milton friedman: Cotton good. Hawley debatable in my opinion. I can’t get past someone blaming sex trafficking on contraception and premarital sex. Also, the guy is a mental gymnast, when running against McCaskill he released his taxes and employed her to do the same for the sake of transparency, she did. Then he refused to answer when asked if the president should do the same.
If it was DT then the media would be whipped up into a frenzy and the ‘Me Too’ movement would most likely be holding public protests calling for him to be removed from office and arrested
@Paul: it was Trump-there have been multiple accusations and he just brushes them off. I’d believe Biden before ‘grab em by the p@&€y’
@John Lyons: There isn’t a single accusation against Trump equivilent to this, although I wouldn’t find it hard to believe if one did come out. Your support for Biden says it all. Tara’s claim is at the very least credible. Her mom called the Larry King show in the weeks after the alleged assault, frustrated and upset and not knowing what to do as her daughter had been brushed aside after her complaint.
I really am very upset from the comments I’m reading online. It’s one thing to say that Biden is innocent until proven guilty while giving Tara a chance to tell her story and not be judged. I would agree with that, even though it is a lot less than Christine Ford got for a much less credible story from 35 years ago. But people who claim to be caring people have let their mask slip. Tara has been ostracised again. Her motives are being attacked and she is being ignored. This comments section in particular is shameful.
I’m not backing any horse in the November US presidential election. In law, the onus on the accuser is to prove guilt of the defendant. The woman has invited Joe Biden to take a lie detector test if she does too. In law, Joe Biden does not have to prove his innocence in this suggested manner – she must persuade legal people to mount a court prosecution. Media trails must not be allowed to supplant court trials.
@Garreth Byrne: Biden could release his Senate papers in the University of Delaware to put the issue to bed, as the alleged complaint is supposedly filed there…
@milton friedman: she has already changed her story several times on whether or not she filed a complained. Most recently last week saying that she didn’t file one.
@milton friedman: but I thought Tara Reade had already said that the complaint was that she felt uncomfortable and implied sexual harassment but that she was too afraid to mention a sexual assault. I could be wrong.
Why “take one if he would”???
Why not just take one, prove he did it & be done?
@Sequoia: Because she knows that no self-respecting presidential candidate is going to sit down for a lie detector test on anything, and the circus/distraction that would bring.
She’s changed her stories multiple times, completely contradicted herself, been found to have stolen from a recent employer. She’s as untrustworthy as it gets.
@Sequoia: Lie detector tests are notoriously unreliable. It would make more sense for both to take it rather than only one because it would provide more validity, but it’s an irrelavant talking point. The evidence is in the senate files. They should be made available.
Second time in a row the democrats backed the wrong candidate
@Dannys Dentures: repeat comment. Maybe take them dentures out.
Imagine my surprise when i seen it was fox news doing the interview if the allegation was made against Donald Trump it wouldn’t even get mentioned on the channel
@Derek glynn: The real question is why are the other networks NOT interviewing Tara.
@Sylvia O’Regan: I’d like too see another tv channel interview her and maybe ask her why she has changed her story so many times
@Derek glynn: hmm… Megan Kelly is EX Fox News, she departed a few years ago. This is not a Fox News interview.
And all the years that Joe Biden was V.P. under Obama (one of the most powerful positions in the world) and she only coming forward now ……. ?????
@Michael Fitzpatrick: yeah it’s odd that,trumps playing dirty games AGAIN!
@Michael Fitzpatrick: it’s almost as if an election was coming up….
Maybe now we will have some balance, Biden bashers instead of Trump bashers
Second time in a row democrats back the wrong candidate
If anyone thinks that she’s telling the truth after reading these 2 articles, then i’ve some magic beans for you:
@JDel:
The authors of those articles seem to think there is something in it.
What can be said is that Reade’s story is credible and compelling in some important ways, and also comes with a number of troubling red flags.
We should support anyone who has been a victim of sexual assault or harassment, for to long people in powerful positions were allowed to get away with this disgusting behaviour and the victimisation of this individuals again by society would stop anyone coming forward. Will a history of abuse by the church and state still haunting this country you would think people would show more compassion judging by the comments below that’s not the case…
@Pat Kelly: where are you seeing comments that are showing a lack of support for victims or for anyone to come forward? Of course she should be supported and an investigation done. I haven’t seen anyone say any different.
@Pat Kelly: such claims require evidence and in the absence of that evidence they should be scrutinised closely. The timing alone stinks of a smear campaign. Just because a woman makes a claim doesn’t make a man automatically guilty.
@anthony mcgowan: supporting someone claim of sexual assault or harassment is not an automatic assumption of the accused guilt. Obviously there us a historical power imbalance with these kind of allegations where fir the longest time people weren’t believed or police and authority’s didnt merit any kind of investigation. The timming of the allegations has more to do with how these things work when a person who has committed past assaults comes to the forefront.
Biden & Trump may be criminals but their victims certainly are not
@Kev: what crime didn’t either commit? Would really love to know.
Oh..and evidence please
@WreckDefier: stormy Daniels remember her!
@Aaron Jones: Oh yes, that money chasing porn star tramp.
@WreckDefier: Who Trump paid off through his lawyer with money he was not supposed to use for any such purpose.
@David A. Murray: All hearsay, innuendo and fake news manipulated by the media.
No crime here, move on please.
How much as Trump paid her pathetic how come she didn’t come forward when he was Vice President
Trump donor represents Joe Biden accuser Tara Reade http://www.breakingnews.ie/world/trump-donor-represents-joe-biden-accuser-tara-reade-998373.html?utm_source=iosapp&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=sharebutton
@Aaron Jones: must just be a coincidence
I dont recall when he was VP if this allegation was known and if it wasn’t then why not, why is she bringing it up now and not before. I’m not saying it’s not true I dont know but just wondered
I’m an avowed “Leftie”. Biden is NOT my candidate, I wanted Elizabeth Warren.
But, if I had a vote in the 2020 election and it was between Trump or Biden, I would hold my nose and vote Biden.
There is the Supreme Court to think of.
And he was allowed to become VP one beat away from P
imbroglio
/ɪmˈbrəʊlɪəʊ/
noun
an extremely confused, complicated, or embarrassing situation.
Total charade of American politics, why only coming forward now?
The far left led the lynching party against Kavanaugh, they too have no love for Biden. If there was any credibility to this charge, surely it would have come to light during his terms as VP. The republicans could not get any traction on the Ukraine allegations, so they roll out this front. I consider myself liberal, but when women come forward 30-40years later in the eve of an election or nomination, something is amiss. The extreme left of the Democratic Party are no fans. They wanted Saunders or Warren to inflict their extremist politics upon the party. Whether you like Biden or not, he is the best chance the Dems have to beat Trump. If Biden wins he will be a one term president and his VP will be the contender in 2024. He’s picking a woman for VP, who hopefully will be elected in 2024.
have your say