American actress and #MeToo activist Alyssa Milano has moved to support former Vice President Joe Biden after he was accused of inappropriately touching and kissing women several years ago.
In a series of tweets, she wrote that she was “proud to call Joe Biden a friend”, touting him as “a leader and a champion on fighting violence against women for many years”.
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“I have been fortunate to accompany him to events with survivors where he has listened to their stories, empathised with them, and comforted them,” Milano noted.
She added that Biden's response that he never meant to make anyone uncomfortable is “exactly the leadership we need to build a culture where women are heard and are equal”.
Milano pointed out that she respects Lucy Flores' decision to share her story and that she agrees with Biden that “we all must pay attention to it”.
“But, just as we must believe women that decide to come forward, we cannot assume all women's experiences are the same,” she wrote, adding that she believes that “Joe Biden’s intent has never been to make anyone uncomfortable, and that his kind, empathetic leadership is what our country needs.”
Her remarks left Twitter users divided over the issue, with some arguing that there was nothing “remarkable” about Milano’s tweets, which they described as an April Fools' Day joke.
Many others, however, accused Milano of hypocrisy, with one user claiming that the actress is “minimising the uncomfortable experiences of vulnerable women who needed Biden for their jobs”.
The Twitterstorm came after Lucy Flores, the former Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor of Nevada, claimed in an essay for The Cut, a New York magazine publication last week that Biden had made her feel “uneasy, gross, and confused” during a 2014 campaign rally in Nevada, when he allegedly kissed her on the back of her head.
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Following Flores' story, Amy Lappos, a former congressional aide, told The Hartford Courant that Biden had touched her inappropriately and rubbed noses with her during a 2009 fundraiser for Democratic Rep. Jim Himes.
“It wasn't sexual, but he did grab me by the head. He put his hand around my neck and pulled me in to rub noses with me. When he was pulling me in, I thought he was going to kiss me on the mouth,” she claimed.
He pledged to remain “the strongest advocate” for the rights of women, promising that he “will fight to build on the work I've done in my career to end violence against women and ensure women are treated with the equality they deserve”.