Speaking from Russia, Tara Reade, former aide and sexual assault accuser to then-Sen. Joe Biden announced her defection ahead of planned testimony after a congressman allegedly warned he was “worried about [her] physical safety.”
The stunning announcement was part of a lengthy press conference Tuesday where Reade was interviewed by Sputnik with convicted Kremlin spy Maria Butina seated beside her in Moscow. Having accused Biden of molesting her in 1993, the former aide addressed the level of her fear of imprisonment or death for coming forward with her story.
“I just didn’t want to walk home and walk into a cage or be killed, which is basically my two choices,” she said noting the move was not hasty, but rather “was very difficult. I’m not an impulsive person. I really take my time and sort of analyze data points.”
In early May, Reade had insisted, “I am not suicidal. I should not be under investigation nor am I a foreign agent,” in a tweet that also insisted the Justice Department and FBI were using tactics to intimidate, bully and silence her. She had been invited to testify about her claims against Biden before Congress by Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) and Matt Gaetz (Fla.)
Tara Reade makes one thing clear: she is not suicidalhttps://t.co/Kin6KkjI0a
— American Wire News (@americanwire_) May 8, 2023
Tuesday, she reflected on how her whistleblower case was intrinsic to her move and how even the lawmakers acknowledged the risk she was taking.
“One of the cases I will be testifying is about how the DOJ and the FBI has [been] weaponized by the Biden administration against its own citizens. So, he said, Tara, you know, I’m worried about your physical safety in the United States. As a U.S. citizen, to hear a U.S. congressman basically say they couldn’t protect me in a whistleblower case is stunning. And it makes me angry.”
“And from what I could see based on the cases and based on what was happening and sort of the push for them to not want me to testify,” she added, “I felt that while [the 2024] election is gearing up and there’s so much at stake, I’m almost better off here and just being safe. My dream is to live in both places, but it may be that I only live in this place and that’s OK.”
Reade’s claims come as the federal government is being scrutinized by Congress for alleged retaliation against IRS whistleblowers as the political weaponization of agencies is investigated.
“I’m still kind of in a daze a bit but I feel very good. I feel very surrounded by protection and safety,” Reade said of being in Russia. “And I just really so appreciate Maria and everyone who’s been giving me that at a time when it’s been very difficult to know if I’m safe or not.”
“When I got off the plane in Moscow, for the first time in a very long time I felt safe, and I felt heard, and I felt respected. That has not happened in my own country,” she confessed.
The former aide also issued an apology to Russian citizens over America’s current political positions, “To my Russian brothers and sisters, I’m sorry right now that American elites are choosing to have such an aggressive stance. Just know that most American citizens do want to be friends and hope that we can have unity again.”
Responses to her defection were mixed.
Praying for you.
Thankful for your courage to speak out and not back down. Stay strong!
— Amy Kremer (@AmyKremer) May 31, 2023
Once again thank you for your bravery and speaking out.
— REUBEN LANGDON (@ReubenLangdon) May 30, 2023
Good riddance, enjoy the winters and the crushing poverty.
— SK Media (@SpaghettiKozak) May 30, 2023
She defected to Russia. What a shock lmao.
— posttraumatic war machine (@DeathSanders) May 30, 2023
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Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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