Biden is getting a lot of media help

No one should pretend to know whether Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, is guilty or innocent of sexually assaulting his former staffer Tara Reade in 1993.

You can’t determine guilt or innocence based on personal assessments of character or anything else. That’s what trials, juries, evidence and cross-examination are for.

But one thing is already clear — the Democrats and the national media desperately want this story to go away because they don’t want it to hurt Biden’s chances of beating President Trump in November.

The press sat on the Reade allegation for weeks. CNN buried the story online. Reporters repeatedly declined to ask Biden about it. When the press finally did report the story on-air, it was briefly and with deep skepticism. Even now, with each new corroboration, the national media tread as lightly as possible.

When Biden eventually addressed the allegation himself, the Associated Press gave his denial a very favorable write-up and lamented that the story puts Democrats, especially women who might run as Biden’s vice president, in a bind. All those potential VPs say they still support Biden and still want the job.

Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer said Biden’s denials were “sufficient.” Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also was “satisfied.” She says Joe is just Joe.

That’s evidently a reference to Biden’s history of caressing females. Reade’s allegation is evidently just another example of Joe’s “old-school, hands-on” brand of “retail politics,” which is how the press downplays it.

Meanwhile, another woman now says that at an event in 2008, Biden asked her how old she was.

“Fourteen,” replied the now 26-year-old.

“Fourteen?” said Biden. “You’re very well endowed for 14!”

Is the left satisfied with that remark too?

The press certainly seems to be. Far from being revulsed by Biden, the press portrays him as a champion of women. In 2011, Biden helped get colleges to adopt a simple preponderance-of-evidence rule in sexual assault cases, which caused many males to be railroaded without due process or proof. Many charges turned out to be false, despite feminist insistence that women always tell the truth in such cases.

Yet feminists still push their “believe all women” mantra, even though they apply it only to women on the left. Most Democrats fervently believed the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas when the two conservatives were Supreme Court nominees. The majority-Democratic press trashed the pair as though they were convicted war criminals.

Yet the same press gave short shrift to Juanita Broaddrick’s claim that Bill Clinton raped her, just as it now soft-pedals Reade’s allegation against Biden. The press simply won’t get behind allegations that damage their side politically.

The press soft-pedals everything for Biden. At 77, he’s lost a few steps and may not be up to the task of leading the free world. His latest gaffe was a comment to a black radio audience: “If you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump,” he said, “then you ain’t black.”

That comment from Trump would set the national media aflame, but the AP wrote a benign report for Biden, not even giving his full inflammatory quote.

Even when Joe physically challenges people at rallies, the press just describes him as “feisty.”

As for the assault allegation, Tara Reade’s lead lawyer just left the case but still believes her and says she faces a media double standard. “Much of what has been written ... is intended to victim-shame and attack her credibility on unrelated and irrelevant matters,” he said.

That’s true. So where’s Anita Hill to protect the credibility of female accusers now?

No matter how much these suddenly shrugging Democrats and journalists protect Biden, if he stumbles in the homestretch and the country makes a comeback from the virus, Joe could end up sleeping permanently in his basement rather than napping in the Oval Office.

 

Mark Godburn is a bookseller in Norfolk and the author of “Nineteenth-Century Dust-Jackets” (2016).

The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Lakeville Journal and The Journal does not support or oppose candidates for public office.

Latest News

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Help Wanted

PART-TIME CARE-GIVER NEEDED: possibly LIVE-IN. Bright private STUDIO on 10 acres. Queen Bed, En-Suite Bathroom, Kitchenette & Garage. SHARON 407-620-7777.

The Salisbury Association’s Land Trust seeks part-time Land Steward: Responsibilities include monitoring easements and preserves, filing monitoring reports, documenting and reporting violations or encroachments, and recruiting and supervising volunteer monitors. The Steward will also execute preserve and trail stewardship according to Management Plans and manage contractor activity. Up to 10 hours per week, compensation commensurate with experience. Further details and requirements are available on request. To apply: Send cover letter, resume, and references to info@salisburyassociation.org. The Salisbury Association is an equal opportunity employer.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

To save birds, plant for caterpillars

Fireweed attracts the fabulous hummingbird sphinx moth.

Photo provided by Wild Seed Project

You must figure that, as rough as the cold weather has been for us, it’s worse for wildlife. Here, by the banks of the Housatonic, flocks of dark-eyed juncos, song sparrows, tufted titmice and black-capped chickadees have taken up residence in the boxwood — presumably because of its proximity to the breakfast bar. I no longer have a bird feeder after bears destroyed two versions and simply throw chili-flavored birdseed onto the snow twice a day. The tiny creatures from the boxwood are joined by blue jays, cardinals and a solitary flicker.

These birds will soon enough be nesting, and their babies will require a nonstop diet of caterpillars. This source of soft-bodied protein makes up more than 90 percent of native bird chicks’ diets, with each clutch consuming between 6,000 and 9,000 caterpillars before they fledge. That means we need a lot of caterpillars if we want our bird population to survive.

Keep ReadingShow less
Stephanie Haboush Plunkett and the home for American illustration

Stephanie Haboush Plunkett

L. Tomaino
"The field of illustration is very close to my heart"
— Stephanie Plunkett

For more than three decades, Stephanie Haboush Plunkett has worked to elevate illustration as a serious art form. As chief curator and Rockwell Center director at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, she has helped bring national and international attention to an art form long dismissed as merely commercial.

Her commitment to illustration is deeply personal. Plunkett grew up watching her father, Joseph Haboush, an illustrator and graphic designer, work late into the night in his home studio creating art and hand-lettered logos for package designs, toys and licensed-character products for the Walt Disney Co. and other clients.

Keep ReadingShow less
Free film screening and talk on end-of-life care
‘Come See Me in the Good Light’ is nominated for best documentary at this year’s Academy Awards.
Provided

Craig Davis, co-founder and board chair of East Mountain House, an end-of-life care facility in Lakeville, will sponsor a March 5 screening of the documentary “Come See Me in the Good Light” at The Moviehouse in Millerton, followed by a discussion with attendees.

The film, which is nominated for best documentary at this year’s Academy Awards, follows the poet Andrea Gibson and their partner Megan Falley as they are suddenly and unimaginably forced to navigate a terminal illness. The free screening invites audiences to gather not just for a film but for reflection on mortality, healing, connection and the ways communities support one another through difficult life transitions.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.