Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden said Friday he is reluctant to release his Senate papers because they could prove to be a political liability in his 2020 bid for the White House.
Mr. Biden has been urged to release his Senate records in response to former staffer Tara Reade’s allegation that he sexually assaulted her in 1993.
He donated the documents to the University of Delaware, but they have not been made public.
During an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Mr. Biden said there are lots of things in his record — including speeches, interviews and “positions I have taken” — that could be turned against him.
“The idea that they all would be made public while I was running for public office, they could be really taken out of context,” Mr. Biden said.” “They are papers or position papers, they are documents that existed. … For example, when I met with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and met with whomever, and all of that could be fodder in a campaign at this time.”
“I don’t know if anybody who has done anything like that,” he said.
If Ms. Reade filed a complaint against him, Mr. Biden said it could be on file in the National Archives, and he requested that it be released if it exists.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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