OPINION:
We are told former Vice President Joseph R. Biden is the highest-ranking Democrat to be accused of sexual impropriety since the #MeToo movement began. Yet Mr. Biden’s propensity to invade the spaces of females of all ages has been documented and photographed and videoed throughout the years. This is a classic example of the “everybody knew” phenomenon.
On the heels of Lucy Flores, a Democratic Party activist and politician, accusing Mr. Biden, then-vice president, of inappropriate physical behavior with her at a campaign event, we have seen a familiar hypocrisy.
Why is the party that fashions itself as the defender of all women from bad, bad men, divided about how to respond to the aptly nicknamed “Creepy Uncle Joe”? Because they stand not for what’s right, but what’s convenient. Today’s liberal establishment is one of opportunism and grifting. Don’t get me wrong — people do matter to Democratic Party leadership — as fodder in their various issue cannons.
In a piece published by New York Magazine, Ms. Flores explains: “I had never experienced anything so blatantly and unnerving before. The Vice President of the United States of America just touched me in an intimate way reserved for close friends, family, or romantic partners and I felt powerless to do anything about it.”
At a 2014 event for her campaign to become Nevada’s Democratic lieutenant governor, Mr. Biden approached Ms. Flores from behind, restrained her by grasping her shoulders, engaged in sniffing at and smelling her hair, and then placed what she described as a “slow kiss” on her head.
One thing we’ve seen in this remarkable political cycle of the last few years is the blatant and ridiculous hypocrisy of Democratic leadership and their comical legacy media enablers on the issue of sexual harassment, assault and women’s rights in general.
Despite his documented history of behaving in a manner that would get any regular Joe fired from his job, few people in liberal leadership seem outraged at the situation. In fact, Democratic politicians, liberal activist celebrities and news actresses are defending Mr. Biden and excusing his behavior.
Jeff Bezos’ blog, The Washington Post, tells us all this is happening because Joe Biden is “affectionate.” In a story titled credulously, “Joe Biden’s affectionate, physical style with women comes under scrutiny,” they insist, “This affectionate and sometimes intimate physical style is one of the former vice president’s trademarks, a defining feature of the warm and upbeat persona he has built during more than four decades in the national spotlight.”
They remind us that he describes himself as a “fingertip politician.” In their story, requiring four reporters, they insist, “Supporters describe Biden’s physical style — which they say he uses with men and women — as a holdover from a different time.” That’s strange, because I don’t think we’ve seen Joe Biden approach a man from behind, restrain him, smell his hair and then plant a slow kiss on his head. But maybe I missed that video.
The fact is, we have never seen him kissing male supporters on the mouth. We don’t see him sniffing like a dog on the street at the hair of another man. We don’t have video of him grabbing male supporters from behind around their waist. I would guess that’s because he wouldn’t want to give them the wrong impression. Or maybe it’s because he wouldn’t want to be punched in the nose.
Paul Bedard at the Washington Examiner reported on MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski’s assurances that Creepy Uncle Joe’s behavior is actually him just being nice.
“Brzezinski contended he’s ’extremely flirtatious in a completely safe way,’ assuring viewers ’I don’t think that there’s a bad intent on his part at all’ since she was sure he didn’t mean ’anything from it except to be nice, to be kind,’ ” Mr. Bedard reported.
Oh, it’s the nice version of manhandling. Got it.
Upon being asked by The Post of these defenses, Ms. Flores said “good intent does not make overly intimate or familiar physical behavior appropriate. ’In my situation, there was no prior relationship,’ she said. ’I had no way of knowing what his intentions were. All I know is that you don’t expect someone as powerful as the vice president to invade your personal space, touch you, kiss you, smell you.’ “
The ladies on “The View” chimed in and did their best to negate the hard work of decades to educate men and women about sexual harassment in the workplace. Fox News reported host Whoopie Goldberg assured the audience, explaining that “he’s just ’a hands-on kind of guy.’”
In the end, Ms. Goldberg said any suggestion that Mr. Biden might stop kissing women and smelling their hair “pissed her off,” and she hoped he wouldn’t stop.
On Sunday, Mr. Biden issued a statement, “Biden in a Sunday morning statement offered a blanket defense of the conduct that Flores described and the ’countless handshakes, hugs, expressions of affection, support and comfort’ that he’s provided as a friend and public servant over the years. ’And not once — never — did I believe I acted inappropriately,’ he said. ’If it is suggested I did so, I will listen respectfully. But it was never my intention.’”
The issue is not his intention, it’s behavior that we all know is wrong and inappropriate. What we should be concerned about in this case and so many others is the fact that this went on for so long, allowing someone like Joe Biden to excuse it in his own mind as acceptable. Here’s a newsflash I thought unnecessary for the 21st century: It’s not what the perpetrator is thinking, it’s what he’s doing and what the women being targeted are experiencing.
• Tammy Bruce, president of Independent Women’s Voice, author and Fox News contributor, is a radio talk-show host.
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