ANOTHER WOMAN
NEW MISCONDUCT ALLEGATION TURNS UP HEAT IN KAVANAUGH NOMINATION
INSIDE: Atkins • Dershowitz • Murphy
The incident happened when they both were freshmen at Yale, according to Ramirez. According to the report, Ramirez was initially hesitant to speak publicly about the incident because of what she described as “gaps” in her memory. But after taking some time to consider her recollections and consulting an attorney, she came forward.
Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee were notified of Ramirez’s claims, and Ramirez and Democrats are now calling for an FBI investigation.
Kavanaugh denied the accusation in a statement to The New Yorker yesterday that read: “This alleged event from 35 years ago did not happen. The people who knew me then know that this did not happen, and have said so. This is a smear, plain and simple. I look forward to testifying on Thursday about the truth, and defending my good name — and the reputation for character and integrity I have spent a lifetime building — against these lastminute allegations.”
It was unclear last night how the Senate Judiciary Committee will address the new allegation or whether Kavanaugh’s confirmation process will continue and on what schedule.
The White House was dismissive of the new allegations in a statement: “This 35-year-old, uncorroborated claim is the latest in a coordinated smear campaign by the Democrats designed to tear down a good man. This claim is denied by all who were said to be present and is wholly inconsistent with what many women and men who knew Judge Kavanaugh at the time in college say. The White House stands firmly behind Judge Kavanaugh.”
Even before the new claim surfaced, Thursday’s scheduled Senate showdown between the Supreme Court nominee and Ford, who claims Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were teenagers, carried perils for both witnesses as well as for Democrats and Republicans just weeks before the midterm elections.
In many ways, Republicans have remained in the political driver’s seat since Ford came forward with her allegation that Kavanaugh corralled her in a room at a boozy house party, covered her mouth and attempted to force himself on her.
GOP Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley of Iowa, after a dayslong negotiation with Ford’s attorneys, has acceded to some of her requests in order for her to appear before the committee this week. Among them, Kavanaugh won’t be in the room when she recounts her story and press access will be limited.
But in all other aspects, Republicans have set the terms. Ford must testify first. Female staff attorneys for the Republican majority will question Ford, avoiding the difficult optics of having the all-male GOP members of the committee grill a woman making a claim of sexual misconduct against a would-be Supreme Court justice.
No other witnesses — including former classmates who have spoken to the press but declined to voluntarily appear before the committee — will be called or subpoenaed, making it a pure case of she said, he said.
Though Ford’s attorneys said negotiations over these details are ongoing, Grassley’s office yesterday called Ford’s requests “unreasonable demands.”
It’s unclear how much that will matter, however. Patrick “PJ” Smyth, a friend of Kavanaugh who signed a letter supporting him, has told the Judiciary Committee he had no firsthand knowledge of the party where Ford claims the assault happened. Leland Keyser, a friend of Ford who said she believes Ford’s account, similarly had no direct recollection of the gathering.
Both Ford and Kavanaugh have received threats — for Ford, they were taken seriously enough to drive her family from their California home and press her attorneys to delay her appearance in Washington until she could ensure her children’s safety.
But the perils for lawmakers as some voters have already begun early voting to determine which party controls both houses of Congress, is whether in the current #MeToo environment, where women’s votes matter more than ever to both parties, Thursday’s hearing seems like an attempt to get the bottom of what happened or instead devolves into pure partisan gamesmanship.