Woman In Pic With Biden Shoots Down Insinuation He Was Being Inappropriate

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 17:  Ashton Carter (R) makes remarks after he was sworn in as U.S. Secretary of Defense as his wife Stephanie (2nd L)  Vice President Joe Biden (L) listen February 17, 2015 in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC. Carter has become the 25th U.S. Secretary of Defense.  (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 17: Ashton Carter (R) makes remarks after he was sworn in as U.S. Secretary of Defense as his wife Stephanie (2nd L) Vice President Joe Biden (L) listen February 17, 2015 in the Roosevelt ... WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 17: Ashton Carter (R) makes remarks after he was sworn in as U.S. Secretary of Defense as his wife Stephanie (2nd L) Vice President Joe Biden (L) listen February 17, 2015 in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC. Carter has become the 25th U.S. Secretary of Defense. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Stephanie Carter, wife of former Defense Secretary Ash Carter, wrote a blog post Monday to contradict any assumptions that a photo of her and former Vice President Joe Biden is evidence of his inappropriate touching.

The photo began circulating after former Nevada Lieutenant Gov. nominee Lucy Flores’ recounted a time Biden unexpectedly kissed her on the top of the head, making her uncomfortable.

Carter emphasized that she does not know Flores and fully endorses her right to speak about her experiences.

“The Joe Biden in my picture is a close friend helping someone get through a big day, for which I will always be grateful,” Carter wrote. “So, as the sole owner of my story, it is high time that I reclaim it — from strangers, Twitter, the pundits and the late-night hosts.”

She recounted the day of the picture, when her husband was being sworn in.

“By the time then-Vice President Biden had arrived, he could sense I was uncharacteristically nervous- and quickly gave me a hug,” she continued. “After the swearing in, as Ash was giving remarks, he leaned in to tell me ‘thank you for letting him do this’ and kept his hands on my shoulders as a means of offering his support. But a still shot taken from a video — misleadingly extracted from what was a longer moment between close friends — sent out in a snarky tweet — came to be the lasting image of that day.”

Read her full account here.

Latest News

Notable Replies

  1. #bringonthedebates

  2. Thank you for the clarification. Who better to know the facts?

  3. Good. Now this silly attempt at smearing him can go away #becauseshesaysso

  4. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on where you’re sitting, I think this whole episode has only made Biden stronger. This did not go as his detractors planned. Not at all.

  5. Let’s hope that at his rallies Trump himself tries to slander Biden for inappropriate behavior. Could he be that stupid??? Probably not.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

47 more replies

Participants

Avatar for system1 Avatar for genla Avatar for pluckyinky Avatar for micaiah Avatar for cervantes Avatar for arrrrrj Avatar for bonnie Avatar for inversion Avatar for sniffit Avatar for ronbyers Avatar for hoagie Avatar for fiftygigs Avatar for thermos_hildebrand Avatar for ncgirl741 Avatar for billyjoe Avatar for pck53 Avatar for metabagel Avatar for dougsanders Avatar for timorwig Avatar for signy Avatar for outis Avatar for c_stedman Avatar for anthony Avatar for ANNFFL

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: