Tara Reade is exposing the Democrat Left for what it is: a mob of power-mad ideologues who hate President Trump so much they’re willing to watch the man Reade credibly accused of sex assault ascend to the presidency.
One of them is Martin Tolchin, founder of Politico and The Hill, who says an investigation of Biden might prove Reade is telling the truth, doom the Biden candidacy, and end in a second term for Trump. So, he wrote, she must be ignored.
The other is feminist bigshot Lisa Bloom, who damaged her brand as a legal advocate for women when she became an advisor to convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein before the trial that put him in prison. She believes Reade, but she’ll vote for Biden anyway.
Reade, who says Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993 when she worked for him, is learning the hard way that when the Left says “believe women,” the admonition comes with a caveat in fine print: If the accused is a Democrat, we might not believe. And even if we do, nothing much will be done.
The Tolchin Plea
Of the two, Tolchin is worse because he doesn’t want to find out the truth.
That’s what he wrote to the editor of the New York Times after the newspaper published an editorial that demanded a complete probe of Reade’s allegations. Frighteningly, Tolchin worked in the newspaper’s Washington bureau, which raises the question of how many stories unfavorable to Democrats he refused to write.
“Mr. Biden’s word is insufficient to dispel the cloud,” the Times opined. The Times added, amusingly, that “an unbiased, apolitical panel, put together by the [Democratic National Committee]” should dive into Biden’s records at the University of Delaware “to foster as much trust in its findings as possible…. The question at hand is no less than Mr. Biden’s fitness for the presidency,” and so “no relevant memo should be left unexamined.”
That must not be allowed, Tolchin wrote. Otherwise Trump could win again.
“I totally disagree with this editorial,” he began. “I don’t want an investigation. I want a coronation of Joe Biden.”
Even worse, Tolchin flatly dismissed the idea that Reade deserved justice. He doesn’t care about it. Reade can take a leap:
Would he make a great president? Unlikely. Would he make a good president? Good enough. Would he make a better president than the present occupant? Absolutely. I don’t want justice, whatever that may be. I want a win, the removal of Donald Trump from office, and Mr. Biden is our best chance.
Suppose an investigation reveals damaging information concerning his relationship with Tara Reade or something else, and Mr. Biden loses the nomination to Senator Bernie Sanders or someone else with a minimal chance of defeating Mr. Trump. Should we really risk the possibility?
Bloom: Tough Luck, Tara, Biden’s My Man
Meanwhile, former Weinstein advisor Bloom is taking advice from Tammy Wynette: “Stand By Your Man.”
Bloom, who wrote that Weinstein was a “hero” and wanted to help discredit his accusers, believes Reade. But however bad Biden’s assault was, Reade will just have to get over it. Trump must be defeated.
I believe you, Tara Reade.
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 https://t.co/eMUBrkkVFE— Lisa Bloom (@LisaBloom) May 1, 2020
Sorry is what Bloom said after she represented Weinstein.
Double Standard
On Sunday, Times columnist Elizabeth Bruenig disagreed.
Backing Biden is a mistake and a new candidate is needed, she averred, not least because the Democrats will inadvertently harm women who claim abuse or assault in the future:
This is collateral damage that Democrats … should be loath to incur. Democrats who subject Ms. Reade’s allegations to a level of scrutiny not widely applied to accusers in similar circumstances — such as Christine Blasey-Ford, who famously came forward during the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court to allege that he had sexually accosted her in high school — also open up past and future cases to reproachful disregard….
Believing women, that oft-rehearsed exhortation, must mean taking action if it’s to mean anything. A thorough and fully transparent investigation is critical, but nothing produced by any inquiry will entirely settle the question.
Question is, how many Democrats agree, and do they have the nerve to demand that Biden step down?
Image: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons
R. Cort Kirkwood is a long-time contributor to The New American and a former newspaper editor.
