Tara Reade, a former congressional staffer who accused President Joe Biden of sexual assault, has amended her tort complaint against U.S. agencies and officials. This amendment follows the recent appointment of Kash Patel as the new FBI Director. The updated complaint, which was filed last year, stems from Reade’s allegations against Biden dating back to the 1990s, when he served as a U.S. senator for Delaware.
Reade’s original complaint claimed that after she publicly accused Biden of sexual assault during the 2020 presidential campaign, she became the target of a concerted effort to discredit her. Reade argues that government entities, including the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI, were weaponized against her. She initially sought $10 million in damages, but with the new filing, the amount has now increased to $100 million.
According to Reade’s attorney, Jonathan Levy, the revision of the lawsuit was made following Patel’s confirmation as FBI director. Levy explained that the increased damages were partly influenced by the success of E. Jean Carroll’s legal victory against President Donald Trump. In 2023, Carroll was awarded $5 million after a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming her, a sum that later increased to over $83 million in compensatory and punitive damages in early 2024.
Reade’s accusations against Biden date back to 1993, when she alleges that he sexually assaulted her inside the U.S. Senate by digitally penetrating her without consent. Biden has consistently denied the allegations, and media outlets aligned with his political campaign have dismissed Reade’s claims as unsubstantiated.
In 2023, citing safety concerns, Reade moved to Russia, where she now works as a contributor for RT, a state-funded international broadcaster. Levy stated that Reade’s case goes to the heart of what he believes is the “weaponization” of both the DOJ and FBI against her, mirroring the 2019 treatment of Reade as a Russian disinformation asset. Levy also drew comparisons to the 2020 Hunter Biden laptop controversy, claiming that similar tactics were used to dismiss the credibility of the claims.
The Hunter Biden laptop story, which contained sensitive personal and business records, was initially dismissed by many media outlets and a group of former intelligence officials, who suggested it showed signs of a Russian disinformation operation. These dismissals were later criticized by some as politically motivated.
Throughout Biden’s presidency, President Trump has continuously criticized the various lawsuits and investigations targeting him, arguing that they are politically motivated and part of a broader “weaponization” of government institutions under the Democratic administration.
