Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. on Friday denied an allegation of sexual assault by a former Senate aide, Tara Reade, breaking a monthlong silence that had frustrated some Democratic activists as his presidential campaign navigated issues of gender that are vitally important to many members of his party.
Sounding emphatic and at times agitated in an interview on MSNBC, Mr. Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, tried to address concerns about Ms. Reade’s claim by saying that she had a right to be heard while also insisting that he had not assaulted her. “No, it is not true,” Mr. Biden said. “I’m saying unequivocally it never, never happened.”
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“Believing women means taking the woman’s claim seriously,” Mr. Biden said, adding, “But in the end, in every case, the truth is what matters. And in this case, the truth is, the claims are false.”
Mr. Biden also called on the National Archives to release a complaint related to the allegation if one existed. At the same time he continued to oppose requests to release his Senate papers, which, he said, do not contain personnel records.
The interview, as well as a statement Mr. Biden posted on Medium, amounted to his campaign’s most concerted effort yet to contain any possible damage to his candidacy just as the Democrat had turned his attention to unifying the party against President Trump. But Mr. Biden’s lack of response for so long was the latest example of caution and tentativeness in the Biden camp, worrying some Democrats about the campaign’s agility in a general election that is sure to be heated and highly personal.
