Democratic candidate for the White House Joe Biden will "respond for the first time" Friday, during a television interview, to the woman who accuses him of a sexual assault dating back to the 1990s, announced the American chain MSNBC. The former vice president will be interviewed on the morning show "Morning Joe" to "respond for the first time to a recent charge of sexual assault," the channel tweeted Thursday.
Tara Reade, 56, accuses Joe Biden, 77, of having sexually assaulted her in a corridor of the United States Congress, when he was a senator. Biden firmly denied, through his spokesperson, in mid-April, but has since remained silent on the subject. He was not asked about the issue in interviews since Tara Reade's first statements on the subject, in a podcast on March 25.
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With the recent release of new material, pressure was mounting to explain it. Donald Trump, himself the subject of several harassment and sexual assault charges in recent years, said on Thursday that he had been "falsely accused many times" . "These could be false accusations," he said of the one targeting his Democratic rival. "I think he should answer it," he added.
For 45 minutes Thursday, American football champion Megan Rapinoe interviewed Joe Biden and his wife Jill, live on Instagram, but did not mention the subject. The former right-hand man of Barack Obama had recalled, Wednesday evening, his engagement in the fight against violence made against women and sexual assault.
The affair has silenced for several days all his other announcements, such as the launch on Thursday of the team that will help him choose the woman who would become, in the event of victory, the first vice-president of the United States. Joe Biden said Wednesday that the complex selection process for his running mate, which must include a careful examination of each candidate's past and background, could last until July.
Among the big names in circulation: senators Kamala Harris and Amy Klobuchar, Stacey Abrams, who had tried in 2018 to become the first black woman governor of the United States, or even the governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer. All are between 46 and 59, an important point since Joe Biden, 77, would be the oldest president to enter the White House. They have so far avoided calling Joe Biden to explain the charges against Tara Reade. And some allies defended it. "I know Joe Biden and I think he is telling the truth and it didn't happen," said Stacey Abrams.
Read also: Joe Biden accused of sexual assault recalls his fight against violence against women
Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who declared her support this week, said she has "full respect" for the #MeToo movement. But "there is also the presumption of innocence," she added. Joe Biden "is a very honest person (...). He is the author of the law against violence against women " adopted in 1994, she said.
Some accuse Nancy Pelosi as well as Joe Biden's potential running mate of hypocrisy, since they said they believed the woman who had accused Conservative Judge Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, in the process of confirming for a seat on the Supreme Court. Nancy Pelosi did so after the long hearing under oath of Christine Blasey Ford at Congress in 2018. Nancy Pelosi "is hypocritical," reacted the leader of the Republican minority in the House, Kevin McCarthy. " The Democrats and their 'double standards' are getting really tiring," tweeted the campaign team for Donald Trump's re-election in 2020.