Gov. Whitmer on ABC's Nightline
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who has been frequently mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate, expressed skepticism early Friday morning regarding sexual assault allegations against presidential candidate Joe Biden.
"The Joe Biden I know, these stories are inconsistent with what I know and what I've seen, in terms of work that he's done to support women," Whitmer said on ABC "Nightline," hours before Biden appeared on MSNBC and issued a statement flatly denying allegations by Tara Reade, a former Biden staffer in 1993.
"Women should be able to tell their stories," Whitmer said, adding that she is a survivor herself.
"I'll add that in doing an investigation it has appeared as though there has not been, you know, much beyond that, the story."
Reade alleges Biden pushed her up against a wall at the Capitol and digitally penetrated her when she worked in his office. At least two people — a friend and a former neighbor of Reade's — have corroborated the story, saying Reade told them what happened at the time. A call into the Larry King show by a woman Reade says was her now-deceased mother has also surfaced. The caller asks for advice for a daughter who's having problems with an unnamed senator.
Republicans and progressives have accused Democratic Party leaders of having a double standard, saying they were more than willing to believe decades-old allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, but not in the case of Biden.
On MSNBC's "Morning Joe" Friday, Biden said the accusation is false: "No it is not true. It never never happened.”
In a statement, he said: “I want to address allegations by a former staffer that I engaged in misconduct 27 years ago. They aren’t true. This never happened.”
