New York Times calls on DNC to investigate Tara Reade allegations

The New York Times editorial board is calling on the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to investigate Tara Reade’s sexual assault allegations against former Vice President Joe Biden.

“His campaign, and his party, have a duty to assure the public that the accusations are being taken seriously,” the board wrote in an editorial published Friday evening.

“The Democratic National Committee should move to investigate the matter swiftly and thoroughly, with the full cooperation of the Biden campaign,” the board continued.

In March, Reade accused Biden of sexually assaulting her in 1993, when she was a Senate aide. Biden on Friday publicly denied the allegations for the first time on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

The Times was one of several outlets that investigated the claims against Biden, who is now the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, after Reade made the allegations of assault earlier this year.

The claim received increased attention when Reade’s former neighbor came forward to say that Reade told her about the allegation in the mid-1990s, going on the record to corroborate the accusation.

Biden has called for the secretary of the Senate to unearth any complaint filed by Reade during her time in the Senate after Reade said she filed a harassment complaint. Biden’s campaign said that the National Archives had pointed its team to the Senate for record-keeping. 

Democrats and the media have faced scrutiny this week from critics who point to what they call a double standard when it comes to how they addressed allegations against now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Biden.

The New York Times editorial board said Biden should receive the same “vigorous” scrutiny as Kavanaugh.

“Last year, this board advocated strongly for a vigorous inquiry into accusations of sexual misconduct raised against Brett Kavanaugh when he was nominated to a seat on the Supreme Court,” the board wrote. “Mr. Biden’s pursuit of the presidency requires no less.”

In its latest editorial calling for a DNC investigation, the board stated, “As is so often the case in such situations, it is all but impossible to be certain of the truth. But the stakes are too high to let the matter fester — or leave it to be investigated by and adjudicated in the media.”