House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested Tuesday that Joe Biden hasn’t properly apologized after two women accused the former vice president of inappropriate behavior.
“To say ‘I’m sorry that you were offended’ is not an apology. ‘I’m sorry I invaded your space,’ but not ‘I’m sorry you were offended,’ because what is that? That’s not accepting the fact that people think differently about communication,” Pelosi told Politico during an event at the Washington Court Hotel.
“What I think that it’s important for the vice president and others to understand is it isn’t what you intended, it’s how it was received,” she said.
The California Democrat, however, reiterated comments she made to reporters on Capitol Hill Monday night that Biden’s conduct didn’t disqualify him from a potential White House bid, describing him as an “affectionate” person.
Former Democratic Nevada state assemblywoman Lucy Flores alleged last week that Biden gave her an unwelcome kiss on the back of her head at a campaign rally in 2014, and Amy Lappos, a former congressional aide to Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., said Monday Biden tried to “rub noses” with her at a political fundraiser in 2009.
Biden released a statement after the first allegation that read in part: “In my many years on the campaign trail and in public life, I have offered countless handshakes, hugs, expressions of affection, support, and comfort. And not once — never — did I believe I acted inappropriately. If it is suggested I did so, I will listen respectfully. But it was never my intention.”
[Related: Lucy Flores: ‘Of course I would support Biden’ over Trump]
Pelosi also said Tuesday public pressure would bolster Democratic efforts to ensure Attorney General William Barr discloses special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings from his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible ties to the Trump campaign.
“There will be a release of the Mueller report,” Pelosi said, before adding she had not spoken personally to Barr. When pressed on why she was so confident, she referred to “our old friend public sentiment.”
“That is the biggest force,” Pelosi said. “The public awareness and the public weighing in can just simply not be ignored without paying a price.”
