Nancy Pelosi called out for 'Joe Biden is Joe Biden' remark amid sexual assault allegation by Tara Reade
“Joe Biden is Joe Biden” was trending on Twitter with more than 160,000 tweets on Thursday, April 30. Why was this tautological statement suddenly so important?
On Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, during her Capitol press conference, doubled down on her support for Joe Biden in the face of a sexual assault allegation against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Tara Reade, a former Senate aide, said last month that Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993 when he was a Delaware senator.
The Washington Examiner's Kerry Picket brought up the sexual assault allegation from Tara Reade against Biden, and said, “Democrats square with the idea that they're essentially standing by Biden but used a comparatively different standard with Justice Kavanaugh when you demanded an investigation against Kavanaugh when a similar allegation came out against him.”
Pelosi responded with, “I respect your question. I don't need a lecture or a speech.”
“I have complete respect for the whole #MeToo movement,” she added. “I have four daughters and one son. And there's a lot of excitement around the idea that women will be heard and be able to be listened to.”
“There is also due process, and the fact that Joe Biden is Joe Biden,” Pelosi further said. “There's been statements from his campaign -- not his campaign but his former employees who ran his offices and the rest, that there was never any record of this, there was never any record, and that nobody ever came forward or nobody came forward to say something about it apart from the principle involved.”
“I am so proud -- the happiest day for me this week was to support Joe Biden for president of the United States. He's a person of great integrity,” Pelosi said.
Pelosi’s comments garnered criticism from many, and not just from conservative pundits and Republican Party supporters. Veteran journalist Mehdi Hasan wrote on Twitter, “Whether you believe Tara Reade or not, just from a political/tactical perspective: the idea that the Democrats can go into the election against Trump and the GOP with the top line of their defense against sexual assault accusations being ‘Joe Biden is Joe Biden’ is beyond absurd.”
Political analyst and podcaster Ryan Knight said, “Speaker Pelosi just defended the sexual assault allegation against @JoeBiden by claiming that ‘Joe Biden is Joe Biden.’ Reminds me of ‘boys will be boys’, but on steroids. The one major advantage Democrats have over Trump is the moral high ground and they are conceding it.”
The “boys will be boys” comparison was echoed by many. Like Jason Call, a democratic socialist congressional candidate, who wrote, “Nancy? Really? Joe Biden is Joe Biden? Boys will be boys? That’s not what I teach my son.”
He added, “The egregious whataboutism being thrown around by Biden defenders is disgusting. As if any of us wanting accountability from Biden on sexual assault ever gave Trump a pass.”
Journalist Walker Bragman said, “The sexual assault allegation against Joe Biden, which is dividing the party and making Democrats look hypocritical, is only the beginning. There is not a single line of attack they have on Donald Trump that isn't undermined by Biden's record.” He added, “How do you hit Trump on his rape allegations when Biden is accused of rape?”
Videographer and producer Robby Starbuck wrote, “Does Nancy Pelosi understand that ‘Joe Biden is Joe Biden’ is possibly the worst defense of him in response to sexual assault allegations when plentiful videos and photos exist of him groping women and little girls?”
Amid all this pressure, it seems Biden is finally going to personally address the allegations now. MSNBC announced that he will appear on ‘Morning Joe’ on Friday, May 1 to talk about the allegations. In an exclusive interview, he will be speaking to Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski, and Willie Geist.