Kavanaugh battles more allegations
Supreme Court nominee calls second claim “a smear, plain and simple”
Two women publicly came forward after Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s initial confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee to accuse him of sexual misconduct.
Kavanaugh is scheduled to appear before the committee Thursday to defend himself against an allegation against him by Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford.
The allegations
The accusations against Kavanaugh involve incidents that allegedly occurred when he and his accusers were heavily drinking as teenagers.
Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford, 51, said Kavanaugh locked her in a bedroom at a party in 1982, held her down, put his hand over her mouth to silence her and tried to remove her clothes. Ford’s attorney Debra Katz said her client considers the alleged incident to be an “attempted rape.”
Deborah Ramirez, a Yale University classmate of Kavanaugh’s, said he exposed himself at a dorm room party in their freshman year. She said they were playing a drinking game and admitted there are gaps in her memory of that night.
Kavanaugh denies accusations
Kavanaugh “categorically and unequivocally denied” Ford’s allegation and said he did not even attend the party she described. He said Ramirez’s claim was “a smear, plain and simple.”
He said he looks forward to testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee where he hopes to have the chance to tell the truth and defend his reputation.
Monday, Kavanaugh sent a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and the Judiciary Committee’s ranking Democrat, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., in which he said Ramirez made “a false and uncorroborated accusation.” He denounced a “frenzy” to block his confirmation and a “coordinated effort to destroy my good name.”
“Such grotesque and obvious character assassination – if allowed to succeed – will dissuade competent and good people of all political persuasions from service,” he wrote. “I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process.”
What the alleged witnesses say
Three people who Ford said were at the house where the alleged assault occurred denied any recollection of the incident or the party Ford described.
Two classmates who Ramirez said were at the dorm party said they had no memory of anything like what Ramirez described. They joined four other classmates of Kavanaugh and Ramirez in issuing a statement disputing her allegation and defending Kavanaugh’s character.
How Republicans reacted
Grassley has tried to balance the desire of his fellow Republicans to confirm Kavanaugh before the midterm elections with the need to give Ford a chance to tell her story to the committee.
Many Republican lawmakers, including Judiciary Committee member Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., slammed Democrats for not releasing Ford’s letter sooner and expressed skepticism about her story.
Graham said Sunday that barring more evidence, he is “not going to ruin Judge Kavanaugh’s life over this.” In a tweet Monday, he said “there seem to be no boundaries” in President Donald Trump’s opponents’ efforts to block his agenda. Graham implied witnesses against Kavanaugh are being coached.
How Democrats reacted
Senate Democrats said the allegations require a longer delay of Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote and called on Trump to order an FBI investigation into the alleged incidents.
Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, slammed Grassley’s push to move forward with a hearing without an FBI investigation and said it was time for men to “shut up and step up” when it comes to sexual misconduct.
Other Democratic members of the Judiciary Committee told Senate Republicans that they were on a path to repeat the mistakes the committee made in its handling of professor Anita Hill’s sexual harassment allegation against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas in 1991.
How Trump reacted
Trump initially had an uncharacteristically reserved public reaction to Ford’s accusation, expressing a willingness to delay the confirmation and saying he “really would want to see what she has to say.” He also defended Kavanaugh’s character and denounced Democrats for not bringing Ford’s allegation to light sooner.
The president eventually lashed out at Ford, tweeting Friday that if the assault occurred as she said, she or her family would have contacted law enforcement.
White House spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said Ramirez’s claim was part of “a coordinated smear campaign by the Democrats designed to tear down a good man.” She said the White House “stands firmly behind Judge Kavanaugh.”