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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
(about 2 hours later)
Donald Trump has said it would be “very hard” to imagine that 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 that 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. 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 doubt when her lawyers demanded an FBI investigation before an appearance on Capitol Hill. Republicans have rejected the request.
But he continued to vigorously defend his unpopular 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. The Senate judiciary committee chairman, Chuck Grassley, sought to end the standoff on Wednesday, announcing that Ford must submit her prepared testimony by Friday morning at 10am, “if she intends to testify on Monday”.
“They’re hurting somebody’s life very badly,” Trump said. “It’s a very unfair thing what’s going on.” “I have reopened the hearing because I believe that anyone who comes forward with allegations of sexual assault has a right to be heard,” Grassley said in a letter to her attorneys.
Ford, a research psychologist at Palo Alto University in northern California, has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her as a teen, which he has denied. “You have stated repeatedly that Dr Ford wants to tell her story,” Grassley wrote. “I sincerely hope that Dr Ford will accept my invitation to do so, either privately or publicly, on Monday.”
“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. Republicans on Wednesday indicated that they were losing patience with the process and appeared set to move forward with Kavanaugh’s nomination with or without her testimony before the panel next week.
“I think it’s not fair [to] Judge Kavanaugh for her not to come forward and testify,” the Republican senator Susan Collins, seen as a key vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination, told local radio station WVOM on Wednesday. “I just don’t understand why the hearing shouldn’t go forth.”
Ford, a research psychologist at Palo Alto University in northern California, has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her as a teen – an allegation he has forcefully denied.
Trump has 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 very badly,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a trip to North Carolina. “It’s a very unfair thing what’s going on.”
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.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. Trump said he “really” hopes she testifies but said it was up to the Senate to decide what happens next.
“If she shows up that would be wonderful, if she doesn’t show up that would be unfortunate,” he said, stating that: “If she shows up and makes a credible showing, that will be very interesting and we’ll have to make a decision.”
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 before an FBI investigation into her claims.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 before an FBI investigation into her claims.
The president and Republicans have rejected such calls, and on Tuesday committee chairman Chuck Grassley said he saw “no reason for further delay”. The president and Republicans have rejected such calls.
Grassley said his committee extended Ford the “opportunity to share her story” in a public or a private hearing, or in staff interviews.
On Wednesday, the Department of Justice said Ford’s allegation “does not involve any potential federal crime”. A spokesman for the department said the FBI had followed proper protocol, and forwarded a letter describing the incident to White House counsel, after receiving it last week.On Wednesday, the Department of Justice said Ford’s allegation “does not involve any potential federal crime”. A spokesman for the department said the FBI had followed proper protocol, and forwarded a letter describing the incident to White House counsel, after receiving it last week.
“The FBI does not make any judgment about the credibility or significance of any allegation, the statement said, concluding: “The FBI’s role in such matters is to provide information for the use of the decision makers.”“The FBI does not make any judgment about the credibility or significance of any allegation, the statement said, concluding: “The FBI’s role in such matters is to provide information for the use of the decision makers.”
Grassley and the president insist that the Senate committee is capable of handling the investigation. Republican staffers interviewed Kavanaugh earlier this week but have not spoken with Ford. Grassley’s office did not provide further detail on the investigation. Committee Democrats refused to participate in the staff calls, to hammer their point that Ford should have been consulted before the hearing was scheduled and that the session should be delayed until the FBI investigates.Grassley and the president insist that the Senate committee is capable of handling the investigation. Republican staffers interviewed Kavanaugh earlier this week but have not spoken with Ford. Grassley’s office did not provide further detail on the investigation. Committee Democrats refused to participate in the staff calls, to hammer their point that Ford should have been consulted before the hearing was scheduled and that the session should be delayed until the FBI investigates.
Republican Senate leaders postponed a committee vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination this week. 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. Republican Senate leaders postponed a committee vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination that was scheduled for Thursday, under pressure from lawmakers 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.
In a letter from Ford’s lawyers to the Senate panel on Tuesday night, they say her life has been “turned upside down” since she went public with allegations. She has received “vicious harassment and even death threats” and that her family was forced to relocate from their home. But Republicans insisted that the hearing on Monday would be Ford’s opportunity to share her story. If she didn’t show, they would move forward.Republicans and Trump have been careful to avoid directly attacking Ford, a reflection of the #MeToo movement, which has triggered a cultural shift in the way women are treated when they come forward with claims of sexual harassment. This stands in stark contrast to the way Trump previously handled sexual harassment allegations against himself, in which he sought to discredit his accusers as liars.On Capitol Hill, Kavanaugh’s supporters suggested Ford may have “mistaken” the identity of her attacker. But in the letter from her attorneys, Ford dismissed that possibility, saying the hearing “would include interrogation by senators who appear to have made up their minds that she is ‘mistaken’ and ‘mixed up’”. In a letter from Ford’s lawyers to the Senate panel on Tuesday night, they say her life has been “turned upside down” since she went public with allegations. She has received “vicious harassment and even death threats” and that her family was forced to relocate from their home. Republicans and Trump have been careful to avoid directly attacking Ford, a reflection of the #MeToo movement, which has triggered a cultural shift in the way women are treated when they come forward with claims of sexual harassment. This stands in stark contrast to the way Trump previously handled sexual harassment allegations against himself, in which he sought to discredit his accusers as liars.On Capitol Hill, Kavanaugh’s supporters suggested Ford may have “mistaken” the identity of her attacker. But in the letter from her attorneys, Ford dismissed that possibility, saying the hearing “would include interrogation by senators who appear to have made up their minds that she is ‘mistaken’ and ‘mixed up’”.
Donald TrumpDonald Trump
Brett KavanaughBrett Kavanaugh
US politicsUS politics
US supreme courtUS supreme court
Law (US)Law (US)
US SenateUS Senate
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