Planned Parenthood finally took a position on the allegations of sexual assault lodged against Joe Biden (D) after weeks of silence, with Planned Parenthood Action’s acting president stating that survivors “should be heard, listened to, [and] taken seriously” and calling for the Democrat Party’s presumptive nominee to “address this allegation directly.”
“At Planned Parenthood Action Fund, we believe women,” Alexis McGill Johnson, Acting President of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a statement.
“We know how important it is that survivors be supported and listened to – survivors of sexual violence not only seek care at Planned Parenthood health centers every day, they are also dedicated staff members and supporters,” she continued:
We believe that survivors should be heard, listened to, taken seriously, and treated with respect and dignity.
Saying we believe survivors doesn’t mean only when it’s politically convenient. This isn’t a fringe issue, it’s one that affects all of us. This crosses political party, race, gender, income level, and sexual orientation.
Any person seeking elected office — and especially the highest office in the land — needs to address allegations of sexual assault and harassment seriously, both as a systemic problem and with a sense of personal responsibility. We all have much work to do to make our country a safer place, free of sexual violence.
Johnson added that Biden “must address this allegation directly.”
“Our country is hungry for leadership on this issue,” she added. “Now is the time to give it to them.”
The statements follow several “women’s rights” groups failing to adequately respond to inquiries regarding Tara Reade, who worked as a staffer in Biden’s Senate office in the early 1990s. Reade has alleged that Biden assaulted her in the basement of a Capitol Hill building in 1993, pushing her up against a wall and forcibly kissing her.
“He was whispering to me and trying to kiss me at the same time, and he was saying, ‘Do you want to go somewhere else?’” Reade alleged. “I remember wanting to say stop, but I don’t know if I said it out loud or if I just thought it. I was kind of frozen up.”
“Come on, man, I heard you liked me,” Biden allegedly said, according to Reade.
“Planned Parenthood just did what the following people didn’t have the courage to do: Nancy Pelosi, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Stacey Abrams, Gretchen Whitmer, Amy Klobuchar & Crooked Hillary,” Donald Trump Jr. said in reaction to Johnson’s statement.
“Also Pocahontas!!!” he added:
Indeed, several purported feminists have virtually dismissed Reade’s claims while supporting Biden, including failed Trump challenger Hillary Clinton, who said she was “thrilled” to endorse Biden, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who snapped at a reporter on Thursday after facing questions regarding the looming allegation.
“I don’t need a lecture or a speech,” Pelosi said after a reporter questioned Democrats’ treatment of Biden, comparing it to how progressives reacted to the unsubstantiated allegations against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
“I have complete respect for the whole MeToo movement,” Pelosi declared.
“There is a lot of excitement around the idea that women will be heard and listened to,” she added. “There is also due process and the fact that Joe Biden is Joe Biden.”
While Biden’s campaign has denied Reade’s claim, the former vice president has yet to address the accusation directly. However, he is expected to break his silence on the issue during Friday’s appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe.
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