What sexual-assault charges does White House hopeful Joe Biden face?
Joe Biden, the former Vice-President of the US and Democratic Presidential candidate, will for the first time address the sexual allegations leveled against him by Tara Reade, a woman staffer from the 90s. He will appear on MSNBC's Morning Joe and will take on the allegations, apparently on the demand of some Democrats. But what are the allegations against him? Let's tell you.
The allegations date back to 1993
In the 1990s, when Biden was an influential Senator, Tara worked in the Senate office. Last month, she appeared on a podcast by Katie Halper accusing Biden of digitally raping her in 1993. According to Tara, the politician pressed her against a wall, kissed her neck, and penetrated her in the basement of Capitol Hill office building. He was a senator from Delaware then.
Thought you liked me: Biden told Tara at the time
Tara told NYT it all happened at once. "He was kissing me and he said, very low, 'Do you want to go somewhere else?'," she said. He stopped only after Tara pulled away. "He looked at me kind of almost puzzled or shocked," He said, 'Come on, man, I heard you liked me'," Biden told her before saying she was "nothing to him".
She didn't complain to police but reported to Biden's EA
After cleaning up in the restroom, Tara took the cab home and on the way called her mom, who encouraged her to file a complaint. Tara chose to complain about Biden to Marianne Baker, his EA, and two aides Dennis Toner and Ted Kaufman. But the assault wasn't mentioned. After the staff didn't take action, Tara approached the Senate personnel office with a complaint.
She filed the police complaint last month
Tara claimed she had to deal with repercussions after speaking up. She was robbed of her duties of supervising interns, was given a windowless office, and the working environment was made particularly uncomfortable. After years, Tara filed a police complaint on April 9 but didn't name Biden. But Washington, D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) told Fox News the complaint is an "inactive case".
Tara feels let down by the likes of Hillary Clinton
As Biden continues to run his presidential campaign with zeal, Tara is seemingly upset that no one has been asking him tough questions about her. "It was really devastating when [Kirsten] Gillibrand and Stacey Abrams and Hillary Clinton, all on the same day, just basically implied my story wasn't true and they believe Joe Biden," Tara, who sees herself as a long-time Democrat, said.
Tara confided in a neighbor in the 90s
Tara, meanwhile, has found someone who knew her story. Lynda LaCasse, who was her neighbor in California, revealed Tara confided in her and was particular about the details of what happened. Lynda confessed she didn't know much about Biden at the time.
Other women have also accused Biden
Incidentally, Tara isn't the only woman to have leveled serious allegations. Over the last year, at least seven other women said Biden touched them inappropriately. Recently, Lucy Flores, a former Nevada legislator, said Biden touched and kissed her years ago. The incident happened in 2014 when Biden was campaigning for her and planted "a big slow kiss" on the back of her head.
Biden, who portrays himself as women ally, denied Tara's allegations
Biden has denied Tara's accusations. "He (Biden) firmly believes that women have a right to be heard - and heard respectfully. Such claims should also be diligently reviewed by an independent press. What is clear about this claim: It is untrue. This absolutely did not happen," his Deputy Manager Kate Bedingfield said earlier. It's left to be seen what Biden says on TV.
