Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is pushing back against former senate staffer Tara Reade’s sexual assault allegation due to alleged “inconsistencies” in her claims that continue to surface.
Biden’s campaign manager Kate Bedingfield released a statement on Thursday highlighting multiple “inconsistencies” in Reade’s latest claims.
“An inescapable fact in the case of these false allegations is that more and more inconsistencies keep emerging,” Bedingfield said in the statement.
She also highlighted details from Reade’s 2019 interview with The Associated Press. During that interview, she noted how interactions with Biden made her “uncomfortable.”
“I wasn’t scared of him, that he was going to take me in a room or anything. It wasn’t that kind of vibe,” she said.
In 2019, Reade made headlines when she accused Biden of inappropriately touching her hair and neck. However, she did not publicly claim she was assaulted until March of this year.
Bedingfield argues that Reade’s claim “is the complete opposite of the current allegation, first made in March of this year.”
Check out the full statement below:
Joe Biden's deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield has released a new statement about Tara Reade, and what she says are "more and more inconsistencies" that come up every day.
— MJ Lee (@mj_lee) May 7, 2020
Full statement: pic.twitter.com/DSi1R6XrzT
Over the last several weeks, there have been multiple reports about the evolution of Reade’s allegations. Bedingfield is expressing concerns about the inconsistencies in details of the allegations.
“Every day, more and more inconsistencies arise,” Bedingfield said. “Women must receive the benefit of the doubt. They must be able to come forward and share their stories without fear of retribution or harm — and we all have a responsibility to ensure that.”
While Bedingfield does note the importance of women receiving the benefit of the doubt where sexual assault cases are concerned, she also noted the moral obligation of being truthful.
“At the same time, we can never sacrifice the truth,” she wrote. “And the truth is that these allegations are false and that the material that has been presented to back them up, under scrutiny, keeps proving their falsity.”
Despite the Biden campaign’s concerns about Reade’s allegations, she is still defending her stance. On Thursday, Reade also called for Biden to drop out of the presidential race.