Douglas Emhoff, husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, found himself at the center of controversy following allegations reported by the Daily Mail.
Fox News reported that the accusations stem from anonymous sources, who claim Emhoff slapped a former girlfriend in France back in 2012, along with hiring a "trophy secretary" at his Los Angeles law office.
In an exclusive article, the Daily Mail described an alleged incident involving Emhoff and a woman referred to as "Jane."
The sources claim the altercation occurred in Nice, France, while the pair awaited a valet after attending an event at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2012. So far, Emhoff has yet to deny the accusations instead deflecting them by claiming they were "distractions."
Three unnamed sources cited in the report suggest the dispute began when "Jane" supposedly flirted with a valet. According to claims, Emhoff's response was to slap her, which allegedly prompted "Jane" to react by delivering two slaps back.
The report from the Daily Mail included items such as photos and itineraries, which supposedly establish that Emhoff and "Jane" traveled to France in the month of the alleged incident.
However, despite these claims, media outlets like Semafor have been unable to independently verify these story elements.
Emhoff himself has not outright denied the allegations. Instead, he described these claims as distractions during an interview on MSNBC with Joe Scarborough on "Morning Joe." An unnamed Emhoff representative spoke to Semafor, stating, "Any suggestion that he would or has ever hit a woman is false."
Donald Trump also commented on the situation in an interview with the Daily Wire. He speculated about the media's potential reaction if the same allegations had been directed at him, suggesting it would dominate news coverage.
The mainstream media has long accused Trump of being a violent misogynist based on allegations for years but now they are looking the other way when it comes to Emhoff.
The Harris campaign and various affiliates, including Emhoff's ex-wife and the Office of the Vice President, have opted not to provide commentary in response to inquiries from Fox News.
Media organizations, including legacy outlets like The New York Times, have not reported on the allegations. This absence of coverage has been noted by outlets such as Semafor.
Emhoff's recent comments underline his view of the allegations as an attempt to distract him from his responsibilities.
“We don’t have time to be pissed off. We don't have time to focus on it,” Emhoff stated, in an attempt to draw attention away from his situation and towards the election in November.
In a sense, Emhoff isn't wrong to say these accusations are distracting from the election but that is every political scandal. It's clear at this point there are credible accusations that Emhoff is an abusive individual and that has a lot to say about Vice President Kamala Harris considering she is married to Emhoff.
The coverage of this situation would be vastly different if Emhoff was a notable Republican.
Despite the attention this story has received, its veracity remains in question. It's possible we will never get the solid facts of this story but the left has already rewritten the rules when it came to accusations against Trump.
Presumption of innocense is no longer a luxury that can be afforded to Democrats as they will not afford it to Republicans.
