In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, among others, praised the Weinstein accusers for their “courage.” For decades, Weinstein, a big Democratic donor who could make or break Hollywood careers, apparently preyed on young women. Over 30 women have now come forth, with five alleging rape.

But where were Hollywood’s social justice warriors the last 30 years?

After all, Hollywood insiders call Weinstein’s behavior Hollywood’s worst kept secret. The television series “Entourage,” based on the world of Hollywood agents, portrayed an obnoxious, browbeating character, Harvey Weingard, clearly based on Weinstein. On NBC’s series “30 Rock,” one character made the following joke: “I turned down intercourse with Harvey Weinstein on no less than three occasions — out of five.”

At the 2013 Oscar awards show, host Seth MacFarlane, after reading the names of the five nominees in the supporting actress category, joked, “Congratulations. You five ladies no longer have to pretend to be attracted to Harvey Weinstein.” Today MacFarlane says, “I couldn’t resist the opportunity to take a hard swing in his direction,” after his friend, actress Jessica Barth, confided that she had been sexually harassed by Weinstein in his hotel room in 2011.

So, many in the Hollywood industry said and did nothing — until now. The courageous women coming forward deserve praise and encouragement for speaking out. But where was this support for the accusers of Bill and Hillary Clinton?

Former Arkansas staffer Paula Jones accused then-Gov. and presidential candidate Bill Clinton of sexual harassment. Clinton aide James Carville famously said, “If you drag a hundred-dollar bill through a trailer park, you never know what you’ll find.” Jones said she sought help from the National Organization for Women, but they refused to support her.

Kathleen Willey, on “60 Minutes,” described being a victim of alleged sexual battery by Clinton in the Oval Office. Willey, a Clinton campaign volunteer, says that Clinton took her hand and placed it on his aroused genitalia: “He touched my breasts with his hand … and then he whispered … ‘I’ve wanted to do this ever since I laid eyes on you.’ … He took my hand, and he put it … on his genitals.” Willey said she managed to push him away. Not only did the Left’s social justice warriors refuse to support her, feminist Gloria Steinem actually defended Clinton! Days after Willey’s appearance, Steinem wrote, “Even if [Willey’s] allegations are true, the President is not guilty of sexual harassment. … [Willey] pushed him away, she said, and it never happened again. In other words, President Clinton took ‘no’ for an answer.” Incredible.

Juanita Broaddrick, on “Dateline NBC,” accused Clinton of raping her when he was Arkansas attorney general and a gubernatorial candidate: “I first pushed him away. I just told him ‘no.’ … He tries to kiss me again. He starts biting on my lip. … And then he forced me down on the bed. I just was very frightened. I tried to get away from him. I told him ‘no.’ … He wouldn’t listen to me.”

Broaddrick also claims that two weeks after the alleged rape, Hillary Clinton verbally intimidated her. According to Broaddrick, Hillary approached her at a political event: “She came over to me, took ahold of my hand and said, ‘I’ve heard so much about you and I’ve been dying to meet you. … I just want you to know how much that Bill and I appreciate what you do for him.’ … [Hillary Clinton] took ahold of my hand and squeezed it and said, ‘Do you understand? Everything that you do.’ I could have passed out at that moment, and I got my hand from hers and I left. … She was just holding onto my hand. Because I had started to turn away from her and she held onto my hand and she said, ‘Do you understand? Everything that you do.’ I mean, cold chills went up my spine. That’s the first time I became afraid of that woman.”

What was the media’s response to Broaddrick’s accusation?

It appears that the only national reporter to ever ask Bill Clinton about Broaddrick’s allegations was Sam Donaldson. After Donaldson’s question, Clinton said, “I have decided … that I would allow all future questions to be answered by my attorneys.” Donaldson quickly tried again, asking the then-president to “simply deny it.” Clinton responded, “There’s been a statement made by my attorney. He speaks for me, and I think he spoke quite clearly.” And that was that.

Where were the Hollywood social justice warriors back then, when the accused was Bill Clinton? After all, Hillary Clinton once said that when women make allegations of abuse, “everyone should be believed at first until they are disbelieved based on evidence.” Didn’t Madeleine Albright, the first female secretary of state, repeatedly say, “There’s a special place in hell for women who don’t help each other!”?

Based on the way the Left treated Jones, Willey, Broaddrick and other Bill and Hillary Clinton accusers, that “special place” could get rather crowded.

COPYRIGHT 2017 LAURENCE A. ELDER