After a second woman accused former Vice President Joe Biden of touching her inappropriately, “Morning Joe” co-host Mika Brzezinski railed against the allegations, calling them “ridiculous” and warning that the Me Too movement could handicap Democrats in 2020.
“I think the next time I see Joe Biden, if he doesn’t hug me and give me a kiss and hold my hand while we’re talking to you, that’s the new Joe Biden, and that’s not the Joe Biden I knew,” she told co-host Joe Scarborough on their show Tuesday on MSNBC. “He’s a nice guy. He’s not a predator, and this is ridiculous. Let me just say it: This is ridiculous. The conversation has gotten out of control.”
On Monday, Amy Lappos of Connecticut, who once served as a congressional aide, alleged in a Hartford Courant article that during a 2009 political fundraiser, Biden placed his hand around her neck and rubbed noses with her. She said that it wasn’t sexual but that she thought he was about to kiss her.
The story came just days after former Nevada Assemblywoman Lucy Flores accused Biden of putting his hands on her shoulders, smelling her hair and kissing the top of her head.
The claims have received mixed reactions, ranging from sharp criticism of Biden to defense of the likely presidential candidate, and Brzezinski made no secret of which camp she was in.
Brzezinski chided the left for undermining Biden, who she said could be a contender in the next election.
“You’re eating your young. You’re eating those who can beat Trump. You’re killing the very people who have been pushing women ahead, who have been fighting for equal pay, who have been doing everything they can to respect women in their lives,” she said.
Brzezinski also suggested that the Me Too movement’s tackling of sexual misconduct has crossed a line.
“I’m worried about the mob here,” she said. “We’re getting tied up in a knot here in terms of what we’re doing and what we’re against.”
Responding to Flores’ story in a statement on Sunday, Biden said that while he will pay attention to women’s experiences, throughout his career, “not once ― never ― did I believe I acted inappropriately.”