The sexual assault allegations against former Vice President Joe Biden aren’t stopping his campaign.
No Democrat or liberal pundit is calling for Biden to step down. In fact, the entire Democratic Party fully believes Biden’s side of the story. Many pundits are putting away their disgust to cheer on their candidate. Most journalists have decided to stop asking questions about it. Liberal celebrities who have claimed deeply to care about #MeToo are staying silent or standing up for the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.
It’s obvious that Joe is going to get away with this, and there’s nothing conservatives can do about it. The Left’s cultural power trumps anything the Right throws at Biden. While other Democrats have resigned in disgrace over much less, Biden is too important to discard. The Democrats have no one with whom to replace him and they want to avoid as much turmoil as possible. So they’re stuck with Joe.
Some conservatives thought the new revelations about Tara Reade would end Biden’s campaign. The allegations are fairly credible; certainly more credible than the scurrilous accusations made against Brett Kavanaugh. Reade alleges that Biden sexually fondled her when she worked as a Senate aide in 1993. She told this to friends in the mid-’90s and her ex-husband said senators harassed her in divorce papers from 1996. Her mother also reportedly called CNN’s “Larry King Live” in 1993 to complain on the air about her daughter’s treatment on Capitol Hill.
By comparison, Christine Blasey Ford, Kavanaugh’s chief accuser, could only present her own shaky recollection of what happened. Her supposed corroborating witnesses disputed her story. Ford’s story was fully believed by all Democrats, liberal columnists, and celebrities. They all felt empowered to call Kavanaugh a rapist on the basis of Ford’s accusations.
As a result, Kavanaugh had his reputation forever ruined. Some Democrats even want to impeach the Supreme Court justice based solely on Ford’s story.
All Joe Biden had to suffer was one uncomfortable “Morning Joe” interview.
Biden is even backed by many feminists. Feminist author Linda Hirshman wrote an op-ed for the New York Times titled: “I Believe Tara Reade. I’m Voting for Joe Biden Anyway.”
Hirshman finds Reade’s accusations credible, yet she still thinks they don’t disqualify Biden from the highest office in the world. She tells her fellow feminists to “suck it up” and think of all the good Biden will do. She writes:
Mr. Biden, and the Democrats he may carry with him into government, are likely to do more good for women and the nation than his competition, the worst president in the history of the Republic. Compared with the good Mr. Biden can do, the cost of dismissing Tara Reade—and, worse, weakening the voices of future survivors—is worth it. And don’t call me an amoral realist. Utilitarianism is not a moral abdication; it is a moral stance.
High-power feminist attorney Lisa Bloom tweeted the same argument to Reade. “I believe you, Tara Reade,” she tweeted. “You have people who remember you told them about this decades ago. We know he is ‘handsy.’ You’re not asking for $. You’ve obviously struggled mightily with this. I still have to fight Trump, so I will still support Joe. But I believe you. And I’m sorry.”
Bloom claimed in a subsequent tweet that Trump is a worse sexual predator, so Biden’s offense is less egregious in comparison.
Democratic leaders choose to believe Biden’s story that he’s completely innocent and that this is a settled question.
“I am proud to support Joe Biden for president,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told MSNBC host Ari Melber earlier this month. “I believe him when he said it didn’t happen, but I also believe him when he said let them look into the records, and that’s what they should do.”
She concluded: “I’m not gonna answer this question again.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Biden’s denial is “sufficient” and insisted he’s a “great candidate.”
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who is reportedly a top contender to be Biden’s running mate, claimed that the “vast majority” of sexual assault allegations are true, but Tara Reade’s isn’t—because Biden says so!
Biden’s denial, which Democratic leaders find so compelling, is simply him saying, “I didn’t do it.” That’s basically it. Kavanaugh provided his whole summer schedule from high school and multiple witnesses to clear his name. Democrats found none of that sufficient.
It’s not just politicians who are defining hypocrisy. Nearly 100 celebrities who attacked Kavanaugh have said nothing about Reade’s allegations. Wonder why…
Hirshman provided the most honest justification for Democratic obstinance: they have no alternative. Bernie Sanders, Biden’s last primary opponent, dropped out before the mainstream media noticed the Reade allegations. That turned out to be an unwise decision, but it’s unlikely Sanders would’ve weaponized the accusations against his opponent. He was too weak and civil to shiv any of his opponents, which is one of the reasons why he lost.
Besides, the establishment would probably be even more inclined to defend Biden if the only alternative was Bernie. Biden could admit to the sexual assault and Democratic leaders would probably still support him over Sanders.
The other reason Democrats are sticking with Biden is that they can trust the media not to cover the story aggressively. They know journalists hate Trump and want him gone. Democratic elites know that reporters can be persuaded or bullied into not asking too many questions. Pelosi felt emboldened to tell Ari Melber what he can and can’t ask. Melber, like a good MSNBC host, didn’t bother to ask her any follow up questions about the allegations.
Democrats also know that most activists will stay silent and leave Biden alone. Feminists don’t want to appear on the same side as Trump, so they likely will follow Hirshman’s advice and suck it up. They’ll reassure themselves that a President Biden will be great for women and they’ll keep quiet. Unlike with Kavanaugh, celebrities won’t protest alongside them and praise them. It’s not hip to care about Tara Reade.
This is a testament to the incredible cultural power of the Left. It can pick and choose which #MeToo scandals matter and which don’t. The Right doesn’t have that kind of power. Conservative media has done a remarkable job of reporting on the Reade allegations, but the Left can just ignore them without consequence. It’s the way of the world.
Just as Kavanaugh did, Biden deserves the presumption of innocence. Even with all the evidence, we still don’t know what Reade alleges is true and it’s not up to a court of journalists to decide. The lessons from the Kavanaugh ordeal should apply here as well.
It is clear that the standard set by the Kavanaugh hearings only applies to the Right. Biden is too valuable to the Left for them to throw him away.
One must conclude that when you’re the Democratic nominee, they let you do it.