Joe Biden's non-apology for what several women have said was a violation of their personal space "doesn't wash," a former senior aide to Hillary Clinton said Thursday.
In remarks on CNN's "Newsroom" with Poppy Harlow and Jim Sciutto, Jess McIntosh, who served as a Clinton campaign communications director and is a CNN commentator, said Biden "has to take responsibility . . . that's what women are waiting to hear him do."
Video of the remarks was posted on Mediaite.
"The excuse that societal norms have changed just doesn't wash," she said. "That sort of paternal behavior toward women in a professional setting has been making women feel uncomfortable for generations. The only societal norm that has changed is that men seem to be taking us seriously when we complain about it now."
"So, the idea that this behavior used to be OK, and now it's not, just really doesn't wash."
McIntosh said early polling on Biden in a 2020 race is just that — early.
"What you're gauging when you gauge those numbers is name [identification]," she said. "Of course, he's way at the top having been Barack Obama's very popular vice president. I worry about all of the attention that we put on candidates who are not yet even in exploratory phase."
McIntosh noted another presidential contender, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., put out a proposal to have Dreamers work in Congress, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., put out a proposal to make it easier to jail fraudulent bankers.
"If we spent a day discussing those policy proposals and what they mean for the country, I think we would be engaged in a better, more uplifting Democratic primary rather than spending time on candidates that haven't announced yet."
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