by WorldTribune Staff, April 15, 2020

The sexual assault allegation against presumptive 2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is a “legitimate” topic for conversation, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said.

“I think it’s legitimate to talk about these things,” the New York Democrat said regarding the accusation made against Biden by former aide Tara Reade, who said the then-senator sexually assaulted her in 1993. “And if we want, if we again want to have integrity, you can’t say, you know — both believe women, support all of this, until it inconveniences you, until it inconveniences us.”

Ocasio-Cortez’s comments, made Tuesday evening during an online conversation with the women-only networking space The Wing, marked the first time any national lawmaker has spoken about the allegation against Biden.

During the conversation, a questioner asked Ocasio-Cortez about the accusation against Biden by Reade. The questioner opposes President Donald Trump’s re-election, but also “really resent[s] the fact that the other choice is someone who has a really long history of being creepy to women.”

Ocasio-Cortez responded: “What you’re voicing is so legitimate and real. That’s why I find this kind of silencing of all dissent to be a form of gaslighting.”

Ocasio-Cortez said it’s “not okay” to ignore issues surrounding sexual assault simply because Democrats want to defeat President Donald Trump.

“I think a lot of us are just in this moment where it’s like, how did we get here? You know, it almost felt like we started this cycle where we had kind of moved on from, you know, from all of this. And now it feels like we’re kind of back in it,” she said. “And, you know, the most diverse field that we’ve ever seen — that we’re kind of back kind of replaying old movies in a way.”

Biden has yet to address the allegations directly, which Reade first mentioned in a March podcast. His campaign has issued a strong denial that any inappropriate incident between the two took place.

“Vice President Biden has dedicated his public life to changing the culture and the laws around violence against women,” Biden’s deputy campaign manager, Kate Bedingfield, told the Washington Examiner in a statement last month. “He authored and fought for the passage and reauthorization of the landmark Violence Against Women Act. He firmly believes that women have a right to be heard — and heard respectfully. Such claims should also be diligently reviewed by an independent press,” she added. “What is clear about this claim: It is untrue. This absolutely did not happen.”

Ocasio-Cortez, who strongly backed Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign, has said she will support whichever Democrat ends up going against Trump in November, but has also expressed skepticism about Biden’s willingness to be an ally to many of the leftist causes she supports.

Meanwhile, the same leftist media which insisted Brett Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford must be believed has gone out of its way to discredit Reade, a columnist noted.

“Most of the media have either ignored” the Biden story or “attempted to destroy it,” RedState’s Bonchie noted. “If the #metoo movement was really about believing women, that wouldn’t be happening. Rather, the #metoo movement has been exposed as nothing but an item of convenience, only being useful when it targets the ‘right’ people.”

Bonchie noted that both The New York Times and The Washington “came to the same conclusion, even parroting each other’s language by warning Reade that she could be charged for filing a false police report. Could you imagine either outlet waiting weeks to hit a Republican in such a situation? Much less attempting to intimidate the woman?”

Bonchie added: “But the Times decided to up the ante here, going so far as to call Reade’s credibility into question by tying her to the Russians. That’s how insane these people have gone. They never actually cared about women being abused. They just cared about how the movement could possibly take down people they opposed. That’s been made abundantly clear and they don’t get to switch it up again in the future.”

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