If Tara Reade were a Ph.D. professor or lawyer instead of a former Hill staffer, Democrats would treat her much more credibly. The woke intersectional crowd is so militant on the issue of diversity because they recognize their own sins — white liberal elite are far more likely to believe other white liberal elite than anyone else. Reade is not in that camp but Christine Blasey Ford was. They won’t believe anything bad about their own side, but will gravitate to any claim about the other side.
If Black Lives Matters leveled accusations against Labor Unions or abortion clinics, the white liberal elite would ignore them. But because their complaints are against those perceived as being on the right, they are championed. Just ignore the Planned Parenthood body count in the black community.
I will keep nothing from you. I will tell you what I think. I did not believe Christine Blasey Ford and I do not believe Tara Reade.
I do not believe either because I think there is no way to prove their allegations and they waited until an opportunistic moment to come forward to complain. We should not incentivize that opportunism, particularly when so far removed from a statute of limitations or evidence.
The difference is that I am holding Ford and Reade to the same standard and Ford’s advocates are scrambling to change their standards. The reality is that Ford had no evidence and Reade may if her complaint exists. But I will not hold my breath on that complaint. By now, if a complaint existed, it will have “walked away.”
Another fundamental difference is that Tara Reade actually told people at the time and Ford did not. Remember, the FBI did spend a few days interviewing people who Ford offered up and none had a recollection. Here, several people have come forward to corroborate Tara Reade’s allegations.
Interns recall Reade abruptly being removed from overseeing them, as Reade claimed. Her brother recalls her talking about it. A neighbor does. Others Reade was close to at the time recall it as well. Then there is her mother calling in to Larry King Live, a fact almost everyone on the left refuses to even make eye contact with.
That’s all pretty damning stuff. Nothing like that existed with Ford.
Something did happen to Tara Reade that made her uncomfortable. But it was a long time ago even if not as long ago as Ford’s claims existed. Again though, the many Democrats and members of the press willing to believe Ford’s forty-year-old claims without corroboration or evidence sure are quick to dismiss Reade’s more recent claims that do have corroboration.
I’ll dismiss the claims from both for a number of reasons.
First, it is outside the known character of either man to do it. Notice how the Democrats rushed forward with Michael Avenatti’s supposed victim and others to try to build up a pattern with Kavanaugh. That pattern does not exist with Joe Biden — his awkward touchy-feely stuff is creepy, but not assault. Kavanaugh’s other accusers were hucksters. We have not even gotten other hucksters with Biden.
Second, Both Ford and Reade could have come forward earlier. Ford could have spoken up when Kavanaugh was in the Bush Administration. She could have spoken up when he was nominated for the DC Circuit. She not only spoke up, but her own lawyer said Ford only spoke up because of Roe v. Wade, which suggests a partisan motivation out of the gate.
Third, Reade could have spoken up, but her mother said she did not “out of respect for” Joe Biden. WTH? If you want to play up the “her mom called Larry King Live” bit, don’t leave that out. He assaults her and she respects him?! That makes no sense. She could have spoken up when the Obama team was considering him for Veep. She did not. She could have spoken up when the New York Times interviewed her about Biden’s creepy touchy feeling antics. She declined. She waited until a podcast interview.
I suspect both Ford and Reade thought they could contain and control the impact of their allegations, but the allegations got away from them and exploded, taking on a life of their own.
I think it is notable that Stacey Abrams and other Democrats, during the Kavanaugh situation, said it was perfectly normal for a victim to wait that long to come forward and we need to believe them and their stories to incentive other women who rise up to take on powerful men. Now? Nah.
With Kavanaugh, the talking heads said his dispassionate denial was proof he was lying. When he then was angry in the Senate hearing, that too was proof he was guilty. There was nothing he could say that would prove his innocence.
Now, with the Democrats, there is really nothing Tara Reade can do to prove what happened to her because the Democrats must rally around Joe Biden. A media that gave Stormy Daniels and other accusers of President Trump ample air time has thus far refused to even consider booking Tara Reade.
What they will do is wait for her to go on Fox, then use that as proof this is all a partisan hit job because she went on Fox instead of another network that won’t even book her.
Honestly, I don’t care what happened thirty years ago and Tara Reade had ample opportunities to come forward, including in a Democratic primary when Biden was slipping in the polls, and she did not. So I see no reason to treat her claims seriously any more than I think Christine Blasey Ford’s.
The big difference is that the media and Democrats were very willing to treat Ford seriously and Reade, with more corroboration than Ford, is being ignored.
The big question here is why the media and Democrats are holding the double standard. The answer is that, like Gollum, they must protect their precious and, if they are honest, Reade is not in the class of person the Democrats give credibility too.
Guess What? I found the missing commentaries and am busy catching up with my reading. I don't agree with everything you present however, I do a lot of analyzing so that's a good trait to have .... also in my opinion, it's another of our American Rights; correct? I like to call it .... FREEDOM TO THINK (and express thoughts as long as they are rational and one is not consumed with putting people down who think differently.) I do not believe the CORONAVIRUS-19 is over; we can expect to see a lot more, especially this summer and we'd be Happy Campers if it were indeed over! In the meantime, I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN as Lee Greenwood so profoundly sings. GOD BLESS AMERICA AND, GOD BLESS YOU MR. ERICKSON. M "I THINK, THEREFORE, I AM."
Maybe, Erick, it’s not that you don’t believe either woman but rather it’s that you don’t respect them. Because when I re-read what you wrote, it seems you have found validity in Reade’s story. It’s that you don’t like the fact she took so long to put the story out there in the public arena.