Democratic National Committee Chairman References 'Hillary's Emails' Amid Tara Reade's Biden Accusations

In a television interview Sunday, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez defended Joe Biden amid sexual assault allegations from ex-Senate staffer Tara Reade, while also referencing the past controversy surrounding Hillary Clinton and the use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state.

"Joe Biden has been very clear that this did not happen," Perez said on ABC News This Week. "And he's been equally clear that when women come forward with complaints of this nature they should be taken seriously, their complaints should be investigated, and they should be treated with dignity and he's done exactly that."

Biden has outright denied the allegations repeatedly, and even challenged the Senate to produce any alleged documents pertaining to Reade's 1993 sexual assault accusations against the former vice president.

This Week host Martha Raddatz pressed Perez on why the University of Delaware (which houses Biden's papers from his tenure as a U.S. senator representing Delaware) can't simply "search for Tara Reade" in the documents.

"This is like the Hillary e-mails, because there was nothing there," Perez said, referencing former Secretary of State Clinton. In citing his own experience working for the late Senator Edward Kennedy, he added: "If you want to see my personnel records, you don't go to the Kennedy Institute. That's not where they go. And so, when you ask the University of Delaware to take a look at something, you're asking them to look for something that doesn't exist."

Perez also cited the vetting process of Biden as Barack Obama's running mate in 2008 as "the most comprehensive investigation of the vice president."

"I'm very familiar with vice presidential vetting process. They look at everything about you. They looked at the entire history of Joe Biden, his entire career. And I will tell you, if Barack Obama had any indication that this -- there was an issue, Barack Obama would not have had him as his vice president.

"Barack Obama trusted Joe Biden," Perez continued. "I trust Joe Biden. And those investigations have been done."

Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel appeared on the same program Sunday. In discussing the allegations against Biden, she called out the media for how it treated now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh compared to the former vice president.

"It went from '#MeToo,' '#MeToo,' '#MeToo,' to 'move on,' 'move on,' 'move on' in a nanosecond because he's a Democrat, and the hypocrisy is appalling," McDaniel said.

Newsweek reached out to the DNC and RNC for additional comment Sunday afternoon.

Later in the interview, Perez said he's hopeful that the Democrats can hold their rescheduled August convention to officially nominate Biden at its regularly scheduled Milwaukee venue. The convention was moved earlier this year due to coronavirus pandemic and Biden has suggested the DNC was even considering a "virtual" convention.

"We're not going to put our public health head in the sand, but I'm optimistic that we can [hold the convention in person]," Perez said.

Updated 9:17 PM ET, including a retweaked headline.