Republicans have expressed willingness to properly investigate her allegations
On December 7, US President Joe Biden signed into law the Speak Out Act, which, according to his Twitter account, is “a bill that’ll enable survivors to speak out about workplace sexual assault and harassment and increase access to justice.” Also trending on Twitter that day was a woman by the name of Tara Reade, who leveled credible sexual assault allegations against the president during the 2020 Democratic primary season.
Reade has been in the news again after Republicans vowed to keep the president accountable after winning control of the House of Representatives in the latest midterm elections in November. Part of that accountability, for Republicans, also means investigating Reade’s allegations.
Congresswoman Lauren Boebert publicly said she was in favor of investigating these claims. Reade has been doing the rounds in conservative media of late. Representative Matt Gaetz even reached out to Reade privately to commend her courage, according to Reade herself. It can be inferred that he will also join the effort to investigate Joe Biden over these allegations.
The allegations stem back to 1993 when Reade worked for then-Senator Joe Biden as a staffer. According to her account, he sexually assaulted her at the Capitol that year and she later filed an official complaint against him. Nothing ever came of that complaint and Reade drifted away from her position with the Delaware senator.
The story is much like many that have come out since the beginning of the ‘Me Too’ movement: Powerful men using their positions to silence victims. This is even more clear with what Biden allegedly told Reade after the assault, “You’re nothing.”
Along with these alleged efforts from Biden’s team to silence Reade, there have also been some sketchy details that emerged after she came forward with her story. For example, the Department of Justice issued a subpoena to Twitter asking for key personal details about Reade and her account shortly after she went public in 2020. It is also anticipated that Reade may have some link to the Twitter Files, e.g., there might have been efforts by Twitter to reduce the visibility of her account or tweets mentioning her – but the full details of that story have yet to emerge.
At any rate, Republicans look set to use their renewed power in the House starting next session to provide oversight over the Biden administration. There are a number of subjects that conservatives have lined up in recent days, but certainly, Reade’s allegations are among the most key. She has repeatedly made it clear that she is willing to testify before Congress – that is, under the threat of perjury – and defend her testimony.
“I have given up hope for actual justice. I do hope at the least [for]a proper Congressional investigation into Joe Biden. This may open the door to other women who were also afraid, silenced and also for staff to tell the truth under oath,” Reade commented about the possibility of testifying.
Reade said that she’s aware of two other alleged victims of Biden who are afraid to come forward publicly but have spoken to her personally. She thinks that the way she’s been treated, “doxxed and bullied in media and social media,” has made others worried about going public, but that a proper investigation would “allow them to feel more safe.” She believes her testimony in an investigation would “open the gates to allow others to step forward.”
She also commented on how brutal the smears of her have been, including “slut shaming, class shaming, threats and harassment.” Reade claims that Biden “has weaponized the intelligence community to abuse his power for a small cabal of elites and I was also a target.” But, at the same time, she believes that the high cost of the attempts to silence her speak to how worried Biden must be – while she is still standing.
“I look forward to shining the truth where there has been whispers and darkness. I hope Joe Biden will be held accountable for the sexual assault against me and any other crimes of abuse of power to silence me. Joe Biden should resign as, in my opinion, he is not fit for office. No one is above the law,” she concluded.
The new Congress will be inaugurated on January 3, which will see Republicans take a slight majority in the House of Representatives. This will allow them to open up investigations into his alleged misconduct, including the allegations brought forth by Reade. As stated earlier, Republican lawmakers have expressed a willingness to take on her mantle and open up a formal investigation into the incident.
