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| Trump: 'Very hard to imagine' anything happened between Kavanaugh and accuser | Trump: 'Very hard to imagine' anything happened between Kavanaugh and accuser |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Donald Trump has said it would be “very hard” to imagine anything happened between his supreme court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, and Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who has accused him of sexual assault decades ago. | Donald Trump has said it would be “very hard” to imagine anything happened between his supreme court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, and Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who has accused him of sexual assault decades ago. |
| Trump said Ford “deserves” to be heard and that he hopes she will share her story at a high-stakes hearing scheduled for Monday, which was thrown into turmoil when her lawyers requested an FBI investigation before she testifies. | |
| But he continued to vigorously defend his nominee, calling him an “outstanding man” with an “unblemished record” and lamenting the hardship this has placed on Kavanaugh’s wife and two young daughters. | But he continued to vigorously defend his nominee, calling him an “outstanding man” with an “unblemished record” and lamenting the hardship this has placed on Kavanaugh’s wife and two young daughters. |
| “They’re hurting somebody’s life,” Trump said. “I think it’s a very unfair thing what’s going on.” | |
| Ford, a research psychologist at Palo Alto University in northern California, has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her more than 30 years ago, at a high school party when both were teenagers. He has categorically denied the accusation. | Ford, a research psychologist at Palo Alto University in northern California, has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her more than 30 years ago, at a high school party when both were teenagers. He has categorically denied the accusation. |
| Kavanaugh’s nomination to the supreme court had looked almost certain to be confirmed until Ford came forward at the weekend. | |
| “If she shows up and makes a credible showing, that will be very interesting and we’ll have to make a decision,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a trip to North Carolina. | |
| In an interview with the Washington Post on Sunday, Ford said Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed at a house party in the early 1980s when the two were in high school and tried to remove her bathing suit. He allegedly placed his hand over her mouth to stifle her screams, she said, and she escaped only when a friend toppled them. | |
| Trump said he “really” hopes she testifies. “If she shows up that would be wonderful, if she doesn’t show up that would be unfortunate,” he said. | |
| Speaking through lawyers on Tuesday night, Ford said she wanted to cooperate with the Senate judiciary committee but in effect ruled out appearing in front of the panel on Monday. Her lawyers said it would be premature to hold a hearing next week before an FBI investigation into her claims. The request echoed demands from Democrats who have accused Republicans of rushing the hearing in an effort to ram through Kavanaugh’s confirmation as quickly as possible. | |
| The president and Republicans have already rejected calls for an FBI investigation, and on Tuesday the chairman of the committee, Chuck Grassley, said he saw “no reason for further delay”. | |
| Grassley said his committee extended Ford the “opportunity to share her story” in a public or a private hearing, or in staff interviews, whichever setting made her the most comfortable. “The invitation for Monday still stands.” | |
| Republican senate leaders postponed a committee vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination this week under pressure from senators of both parties to allow for a public airing of the accusations. But Ford’s reluctance to testify on Monday after her lawyers said she was willing to go before the panel has appeared to consolidate GOP support behind the nominee. Even Republicans who insisted on a hearing before the Senate acted on whether to confirm Kavanaugh’s confirmation now say the panel should proceed, even if Ford doesn’t show up on Monday. | |
| Lindsay Graham, a Republican of South Carolina, said in a statement on Wednesday, the request for an FBI investigation into the decades-old allegations is “not about finding the truth, but delaying the process until after the midterm elections”. | |
| He added: “It is imperative the judiciary committee move forward on the Kavanaugh nomination and a committee vote be taken as soon as possible.” | |
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