A second woman has come forward with a #MeToo allegation against former Vice President Joe Biden, saying he touched her inappropriately at a political fundraiser in 2009.
Amy Lappos, 43, who was a congressional aide to Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., at the time of the alleged incident, told the Washington Examiner that Biden, 76, should not run for president in 2020 and should support a female candidate instead.
She described how he put his hand around her neck and pulled her toward him to rub noses. She said she thought he was going to kiss her on the mouth. “This is the Al Franken thing all over again,” she said.
Lappos is the second woman to accuse Biden of inappropriate touching in recent days. On Friday, Lucy Flores, a former Nevada state assemblywoman, said Friday that Biden had touched her inappropriately and kissed her on the back of her head at a campaign rally in 2014.
“Women of my own party are tearing apart Flores and it was my responsibility to come forward,” Lappos said. “What he did was hideous. It was an invasion of personal space and incredibly awkward. Joe Biden can’t keep his hands to himself. I’ve been hearing things and reading things for so long and I just had to say something.”
She said Biden’s behavior with women meant he should not run in 2020. “We have four other talented women running, he should throw his support behind them.”
Earlier, Lappos told told The Hartford Courant: “It wasn’t sexual, but he did grab me by the head. Democrats say Trump this and Trump that, but that’s not where we set the bar,” she said. “I never filed a complaint, to be honest, because he was the vice president. I was a nobody. There’s absolutely a line of decency. There’s a line of respect. Crossing that line is not grandfatherly. It’s not cultural. It’s not affection. It’s sexism or misogyny.”
Lappos appeared with Biden in three photos at the event that took place Oct. 5, 2009, of the home of housing developer Ron Moelis. She said the photos were taken before the alleged incident happened.
“If Biden truly supports women and gender equality he would step aside and support one of the many talented and qualified women running,” she said. “The same goes for the other men who have thrown their hat in the ring. Women are 52 percent of the population. We are not a minority, we are the majority. It is time we are represented as such. After 45 male presidents it is time we elect a woman.”
Bill Russo, spokesman for Biden, did not immediately issue a separate statement on the new allegation, instead reiterating the comments Biden released Sunday. In that statement, the potential 2020 candidate said he did not recall his expressions of affection as others had, and defended his treatment of women.
“I may not recall these moments the same way, and I may be surprised at what I hear. But we have arrived at an important time when women feel they can and should relate their experiences, and men should pay attention. And I will,” he said.
“I will also remain the strongest advocate I can be for the rights of women. I 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. I will continue to surround myself with trusted women advisers who challenge me to see different perspectives than my own. And I will continue to speak out on these vitally-important issues where there is much more progress to be made and crucial fights that must be waged and won.”
But a later statement from Russo was much more combative, denouncing the “cottage industry of lies” that the #MeToo movement had thrown up.
[Read more: Third time lucky? Biden spokesman denounces #MeToo ‘cottage industry of lies’]
