General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Here's a list of people Tara Reade has accused of assault or harassment. [View all]Hekate
(90,562 posts)...her story is sexual Swiftboating.
The GOP and Putin both know that sexual abuse is a "trigger" for us Democrats, and that if they pull that trigger enough times we will kill our own, deservedly or not.
The Me Too movement was not intended to be the New Puritanism, nor was it intended to be the prelude to the New Salem Witch Craze, where an accusation, however ludicrous, could lead to the public hanging of innocent people.
When it comes to believing women -- sorry, but it is not unconditional in politics in this day and age. We were manipulated into dumping Al Franken without due process, and that manipulation proceeds apace. Consider the source, consider their associates. This isn't the old "What were you wearing, lady?" schtick. This is being intelligent enough to check what other motives the accuser might have before running with the story. If even Ronan Farrow declines to take it up, something is really wrong.
The attempted murder of Joe Biden's reputation is infuriating on so many levels. If his lifelong career in politics had not been clean, Obama would not have take Biden as VP. Then Obama's administration itself was clean and scandal free, and we are all aware that the GOP tried every day to pin something, anything, nasty on both Obama and Biden -- finally settling on lying about that old reliable, Hillary, because that always works.
In this campaign, Trump-GOP tried political malfeasance (Ukraine), and now they are trying sex. What will they try next? What bait will we take? What bait will we be dumb enough to take?