Tara Reade Cancels 1st Network Interview While Powerful Democrat Women Stand By Biden

Tara Reade, the former Senate staffer accusing Joe Biden of sexual assault says she's not quite ready to respond to his denial. 

Reade tells the Wall Street Journal she will eventually sit for a television interview but right now she’s “digesting and processing everything he said.”  

Meanwhile, Biden appears to be moving on after personally addressing the allegations on MSNBC Friday.

“It is not true. I'm saying unequivocally it never, never happened. And it didn't. It never happened,” claims Biden. “Look, from the very beginning, I've said believing women means taking the woman's claims seriously when she steps forward in and then vet it, look into it…that's true in this case as well. Women have a right to be heard and the press should rigorously investigate claims they make. I'll always uphold that principle. But in the end, in every case, the truth is what matters. In this case, the truth is the claims are false.”

A potentially key piece to the puzzle is a nearly 30-year-old claim Reade says she filed with a Senate personnel office about the incident. Reade, now 56 years old, does not have a copy of the complaint and can’t remember whether she used the words “sexual harassment” when detailing what happened to her.

Biden maintains he’s never had any knowledge of such a complaint.

"I'm absolutely positive that no one that I'm aware of ever has been made aware of any complaint, a formal complaint made by, or a complaint, by Tara Reade against me at the time this allegedly happened 27 years ago,” argues Biden.

On Friday Biden directed the National Archives to search Senate records in its possession for any record of this complaint and make it available, but the Secretary of the Senate responded that if such a document exists, legally, they couldn’t release it.

Many powerful female Democrats are standing with Biden despite the allegations. They include Hillary Clinton, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a possible running mate for Biden.

“As a survivor, and as a feminist, I'll say this. We need to give people an opportunity to tell their story. Then we have a duty to vet it,” Whitmer told CNN. 

On #CNNSOTU w/ @jaketapper, @GovWhitmer discusses what went on when protesters in Michigan entered the state capital building.https://t.co/2tofk3N4gL

— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) May 3, 2020

”I have read a lot about this current allegation…I don't believe that it's consistent with the Joe Biden that I know, and I do believe Joe, and I support Joe Biden.”

Even  Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is standing by his former senate colleague for now.

“The Joe Biden I know, I've never seen anything or believed that he would do anything like this until you convince me otherwise,” Graham told Fox News.

President Donald Trump, who’s no stranger to sexual harassment accusations, also offered this unsolicited advice to Biden on The Dan Bongino Show.

“It’s his problem, but I like to get in front of it and deny it. If it’s not true you deny it and I’ve been a total victim of this nonsense, false accusations,” said Trump.

Many Republicans, however, are outraged by what they call a double standard in how Democrats and the media are treating Biden’s accusations compared to those brought against Justice Brett Kavanaugh – and cite the need for due process for everyone. 

“The hypocrisy has been appalling, and we need to do some self-reflection as to how Kavanaugh was treated versus how Biden is being treated right now,” RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel told ABC This Week.

“I’m going to take issue with the media ignoring this... 5 weeks of silence. 19 interviews without a single question... It went from me too, me too, me too, to move on, move on, move on in a nanosecond because [Biden is] a democrat, and the hypocrisy is appalling.” @GOPChairwoman pic.twitter.com/0n03Jhz2bH

— Richard Walters (@rww_gop) May 3, 2020