by Curt Anderson on August 11, 2021 2:24 pm
HtS,
Regarding Tara Reade, you think her implausible claims deserve investigation. Of course they were investigated by the media and found wanting. I suppose you'd like Biden to go trial. Tara Reade has a steep hill to claim. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
There are reasons why there are statutes of limitations on crimes. It's practically impossible for an accused person to have an iron-clad alibi or produce witnesses to prove that an event did NOT happen 30 years ago, especially when the accuser is vague about the date and time. Reade says the alleged event happened in "the spring of 1993".
She alleged that Biden penetrating her with his fingers about 30 years ago. She doesn't offer any evidence. She provides no witnesses. There are lower standards of evidence in the Court of Public Opinion than in an actual court of law, but there are standards nonetheless.
A public figure might be found "guilty" by the public if in the absence of real evidence, at least two conditions are met:
1. There are multiple similar accusations by other women. That was apparently the case with Bill Cosby and Harvey Weinstein. No other women have made the same accusations as Reade about Biden. In fact, 74 former Biden staffers interviewed by PBS are skeptical and/or disputed Reade's characterizations and claims.
2. The accuser needs to be credible or at least not a known perjurer. Reade fails on that count. Former friends and acquaintances interviewed by Politico have called her "manipulative", "deceitful" and "a user".
In the meantime, Tara Reade, who was dropped as client by her lawyer, uses unrelated reports of high-profile sexual harassment and assault to promote her social media activities and her GoFundMe page.
pbs.org
politico.com
cnn.com
washingtonpost.com
Props to the Dems in New York for standing up to the bullying of Andrew Cuomo to make the bully back down.