Senator gives feds ‘information’ on Supreme Court nominee

WASHINGTON — Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Thursday she has notified federal investigators about information she received — and won’t disclose publicly — concerning Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

The California Democrat said in a statement she “received information from an individual concerning the nomination.” She said the person “strongly requested confidentiality, declined to come forward or press the matter further, and I have honored that decision.”

A Senate Democratic aide and another person familiar with the matter said it referred to an incident that occurred while Kavanaugh was high-school age. The two spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the matter.

The details of the incident and the identity of the person who provided the information turned over to federal authorities were unclear.

The Judiciary Committee, which has finished confirmation hearings for Kavanagh, is scheduled to vote next Thursday on whether to recommend that Kavanaugh’s nomination be confirmed by the full Senate.

Feinstein’s statement that she has “referred the matter to federal investigative authorities” jolted Capitol Hill and threatened to disrupt what has been a steady path toward confirmation for Kavanaugh by Republicans eager to see the conservative judge on the court.

An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment.

Feinstein declined to answer questions outside the hearing room, and other senators’ offices largely deferred to the ranking member. Democratic senators on the panel met privately Wednesday evening and discussed the information, according to two Senate aides who were not authorized to discuss the situation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The White House questioned the timing of Feinstein’s move, calling it an “11th hour attempt to delay his confirmation.”

“Throughout his confirmation process, Judge Kavanaugh has had 65 meetings with senators — including with Senator Feinstein — sat through over 30 hours of testimony, addressed over 2,000 questions in a public setting and additional questions in a confidential session. Not until the eve of his confirmation has Sen. Feinstein or anyone raised the specter of new ‘information’ about him,” said Kerri Kupec, a White House spokesperson.

Kupec added that the FBI has vetted Kavanaugh “thoroughly and repeatedly” during his career in government and the judiciary.