Former Vice President Joe Biden elaborated on accusations that he inappropriately touched and kissed women without their permission. But he stopped short of apologizing directly to them.
And that's the thing: He still hasn't apologized. He released a two minute video today and it did not include an apology.
He has refused to take responsibility. This isn't leadership. He needs to take accountability and he needs to do it without having us urge him to do so. This whole problem is a test he has failed. He should have seen it as a blessing to address this and demonstrate leadership.
He had the opportunity to make a real point, to show real leadership. He failed.
This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" for Wednesday:
Wednesday, April 3, 2019. As former Vice President Joe Biden prepares
to announce his run for the presidency, two more women step forward.
And now there are four. THE NEW YORK TIMES reported late yesterday that two more women have stepped forward to complain about Joe Biden groping them. Then 19-year-old Caitlyn Caruso was groped Elaine offered an example of how the hideous Alyssa Milano might try to spin that:
Hagtress Alyssa Milano will, no doubt, show up to defend Joe Biden again. Probably insist, "Yes, he touched Caitlyn's leg but he did so at 'an event about sexual assault' and we have to give him credit for attending the event! That's the important thing!"
For years, we have had to endure the image of the wife standing next to the politician husband as he minimizes his actions. Apparently, these days the Alyssa Milanos will rush forward to volunteer for the job.
The second woman is DJ Hill who explained that Joe's hands were slipping down her back when her husband stepped in to stop it.
RT CBSThisMorning: Four women are coming forward about former Vice President Joe Biden, saying he touched them in a way that made them feel uncomfortable.
And now there are four. THE NEW YORK TIMES reported late yesterday that two more women have stepped forward to complain about Joe Biden groping them. Then 19-year-old Caitlyn Caruso was groped Elaine offered an example of how the hideous Alyssa Milano might try to spin that:
Hagtress Alyssa Milano will, no doubt, show up to defend Joe Biden again. Probably insist, "Yes, he touched Caitlyn's leg but he did so at 'an event about sexual assault' and we have to give him credit for attending the event! That's the important thing!"
For years, we have had to endure the image of the wife standing next to the politician husband as he minimizes his actions. Apparently, these days the Alyssa Milanos will rush forward to volunteer for the job.
The second woman is DJ Hill who explained that Joe's hands were slipping down her back when her husband stepped in to stop it.
RT CBSThisMorning: Four women are coming forward about former Vice President Joe Biden, saying he touched them in a way that made them feel uncomfortable.
Four women have now come forward and there are more women considering coming forward. Applause for all four who have come forward. This is not a conversation that America has ever wanted to have -- and judging by the offensive remarks of Alyssa Milano and others (Weight Gain McCain, for example), it's a conversation that the country will be forced to have. Boys will be boys and Biden will be Biden appears to be the position so many of them are taking.
In contrast to the willfully stupid, Jessica Valenti (MEDIUM) observes:
Those who believe this is simply a
matter of misunderstanding must then fundamentally not trust women. But
women have been dealing with these interactions since, unfortunately,
before puberty. We are the utmost experts in what they mean — what’s
appropriate and what’s demeaning.
I also wonder how many men would
be fine with a boss who rubbed their shoulders while deeply inhaling
the back of their head. The truth is that if men had to deal with a
fraction of the indignities women are expected to endure, they would
revolt.
The effect of these seemingly
minor infractions is one that women know all too well: Every shoulder
rub and unwanted kiss tells us how little our personal space, privacy,
and dignity really mean. Women are reminded of our place again and again
and again. And then, when we’re told it’s all in our heads, we’re
reminded one more time.
It’s telling that Biden has constructed his defense around the claim that he never had the “intention” of causing women discomfort. He’s placed the burden of reckoning on the recipients of his actions, the women who mistook his friendly gestures as invasive and unsettling. But good intentions that forge ahead, time after time, with no regard for the unique circumstances of each situation are no longer good—they’re careless. Any leader might occasionally offend women or step out of line in physical interactions with them. But he’d do so in spite of his sincere best efforts, not because he seemingly didn’t care enough to try.
It's really clear and it's really basic -- unless you're an enabler like Alyssa Milano. If you're an enabler, you Tweet crap like this.
4. Joe Biden’s response that he never meant to make anyone uncomfortable and that he'll listen and learn from anyone who says otherwise is exactly the leadership we need to build a culture where women are heard and are equal.
"Listen and learn''? He and his wife both called the Carters to get Stephanie to write that piece she wrote which, yes, is dismissing Lucy Flores. But more to the point, he's 76-years-old and has been doing this forever. There have been articles about it, there was Samantha Bee's infamous 2015 skit about it on THE DAILY SHOW. At what point do we stop saying, "Oh, if only the women involved had expressly told him . . ." No, it's his behavior and it's always been inappropriate. He's gotten away with it and he knows he has. He's only 'addressing' it now -- hiding behind women's skirts -- because he wants to bury it before his big "I am announcing I will seek the Democratic Party's presidential nomination" moment later this month.
He has shown no leadership on this issue. He has ignored it and only responded when forced to.
I guess Alyssa's 'busy' schedule of doing nothing doesn't allow her time to brush up on issues or information. She's got that bit part in the NETFLIX series everyone hated, remember? She's so busy. She's trying to punish the Georgia film industry these days but if she was serious she could announce that she won't go to Georgia to film INSATIABLE anymore, couldn't she? She could take a stand if she wanted to but she doesn't want to give up her bi part as the middle-aged side piece. She knows her talent is minimal and her future job prospects even more so.
Some just don't get it. Like this one:
Stop this insanity. If Joe Biden or anyone else sexually assaulted you, by all means please file charges. No matter when it happened. But if someone, touching you, male or female, makes you "uncomfortable," say something... to them...at the time. Even your cheek pinching grandma.
Randi's all about the women -- provided they're men in dresses wearing dresses for laughs. She didn't really write a part for Sally Field into MRS. DOUBTFIRE, did she? Just a stereotypical nag. Well there are always women who will hate themselves and write that into their work. Congratulations, Randi, may you soon become the man you always wanted to be -- right after you kill Mommy -- that was the point of MRS. DOUBTFIRE, after all. And THE TOOTH FAIRY. Let's not forget that. Or that her body of work is all about rebuking women. Yet she thinks she can step up and we're all supposed to listen? Write another bad 'comedy,' Randi, channel your rage over being a woman into that -- again.
In the real world, and in the stories being shared, women explain that they were being groped by the Vice President of the United States and didn't believe they had any power.
But worry no more! Randi's busy writing SISSY'S BIG MOVE. Vin Diesel, desperate to get his 'high strung' and 'distant' ex-wife back, learns that his wife was groped by the CEO of her company and didn't feel she could speak out. So Vin dons a dress and becomes Sissy McMatthews -- a sassy and brassy new hire from the south who shows how a man -- posing as a woman -- would handle it and -- as in all of Randi's works -- saves the day because -- in Randi's works -- that's what men do. And his ex-wife, she'll take him back and feel more kindly towards the kitchen -- it's a Randi script which means it writes itself! Go, Randi, go! And take your violet and blue mornings with you.
Joe voted for the Iraq War.
I feel like really if you set aside all the charges about Joe Biden then you’re left with a guy who greenlit the Iraq War while chairing the foreign relations committee, has apologized for his earlier work chairing judiciary, and was known as a top ally for credit card companies.
The Iraq War continues. The never-ending wars continue. The Defense Dept budget is a sink hole and Americans have less and less to show for their way of life as a result.
From David DeGraw:
Google has once again pulled my new report from
their search results. This is the second report on whistleblowers being
silenced that they have censored. The first report eventually got relisted after making noise about it on social media. Let's see what happens with this one...
Please help spread the word on Twitter here and Facebook here.
Please help spread the word on Twitter here and Facebook here.
You can now download the new report:
Pentagon: 95,613 Whistleblower Complaints, Trillions of Tax Dollars Unaccounted For
Pentagon: 95,613 Whistleblower Complaints, Trillions of Tax Dollars Unaccounted For
~*~
As
you can see from these extensive reports, I have been working hard to
uncover vital information on this critical National Security issue. All
of this work is done independently and it is 100% reader-funded. If you
appreciate my work and want to see more of it, now is the time to step up in support.
Very Grateful for all the much needed support,
~ David
~ David
Please forward this e-mail to friends >>
~*~
If you appreciate my work, please subscribe or make a one-time donation. Every dollar helps keep me reporting...
Here's a section of David's report:
Blow the whistle on fraud and the Defense Contract Audit Agency will accuse you of being a mentally ill terrorist.
When you look into Whistleblower
cases, there are many reoccurring themes. To get a more in-depth
understanding of what whistleblowers are up against, in one of the very
rare cases when American taxpayers were able to get justice, Kirk
McGill, who was a Senior Auditor for the Defense Contract Audit Agency
(DCAA), blew the whistle on a $433 million contract.
After spending over two years
battling against many retaliation attacks, which led to his demotion,
involuntary transfer, unpaid suspension, character
assassination and eventual resignation, McGill summed up his nightmare
in dealing with the DOD IG, the office that handles DOD whistleblower
complaints, by saying:
"A number of my colleagues and
superiors told me that attempting to contact DOD IG as a whistleblower
was futile, and they have been proven totally correct."
"It is clear that DOD IG is either
one of the most incompetent investigative agencies in the history of
that profession, or is deliberately being obtuse."
"As noted repeatedly, DOD IG was told in a disclosure that DCAA IRD [Internal Review Directorate] was compromised."
"Yet, despite this fact, DOD IG
continued to refer complaints to IRD as if nothing was wrong. In doing
so, DOD IG handed the very people that were retaliating against me,
related to the whistleblower disclosures, specific details of the
allegations I was making against them."
"Even Inspector Clouseau would recognize that something is wrong with this picture."
After the DOD IG referred McGill's
case to the DCAA IRD, the DCAA IRD then engaged in a series of highly
scandalous actions in attempts to discredit and silence McGill. They
even falsely accused him of being a terrorist who wanted to blow up the
Capitol Building, and they also made false accusations that he was
mentally ill.
A Wikipedia page featuring
information about McGill's case was vandalized and derogatory comments
smearing his reputation were added to the website. The IP address that
made those "edits" to the Wikipedia entry came from internal DCAA
servers.
In addition to all of that, McGill's social media accounts were hacked.
Keep in mind, this all happened to a
Senior DOD Auditor for the Defense Contract Audit Agency who was
vindicated after multiple Congressional hearings.
As a military spending auditor, in
this case alone, McGill saved American taxpayers hundreds of millions of
dollars, and this is how the DOD IG and Defense Contract Audit Agency,
who oversee trillions of tax dollars, tried to silence him.
It took McGill over 10,000 hours of
work, two trips to Washington D.C. and incredible personal costs — while
under constant intimidation and retaliation attacks, which ultimately
led to him resigning — to eventually get justice for American taxpayers.
How many people in the military have the time or money needed to pull that off?
McGill's heroic battle featured
common obstacles that many DOD whistleblowers face. In a letter to
Congress, McGill further highlighted the DOD IG's systemic failure to
protect whistleblowers:
"DOD IG closed this allegation
without discussing the matter with me directly in any way. It then
either closed or referred every complaint (with two exceptions) right
back to DCAA-IRD.
"I do not believe that any faith
can be placed in DOD IG if it passes the buck to the very people accused
of the misconduct in question, putting them on notice of exactly what
they are accused of, and who did the accusing."
"Frankly, DOD IG's conduct is, in
and of itself, worthy of Congressional attention and possible action; no
whistleblower with two brain cells to rub together would trust the DOD
IG after this conduct, and that should seriously concern the Congress
that relies on such whistleblowers to uncover Executive Branch
misconduct."
Not surprisingly, with the DOD IG
working in partnership with agencies and officials who are being accused
of corruption and crimes, there are now a record number of
whistleblowers who have been retaliated against and silenced.
~ This is an excerpt from my
latest extensive report, which takes an in-depth look into critical
systemic breakdowns throughout the whistleblowing process.
This excerpt was posted to Facebook here.
(Read Full Report Here)
~*~
Money for destruction but not to help people.
We need a #PeaceDividend to take the trillions of dollars spent on regime change wars and the nuclear arms race and invest them to meet the needs of the American people. Otherwise, we can't even ensure our most vulnerable communities have clean water following a disaster. twitter.com/nowthisnews/st…
In other developments . . .
The following sites updated:
