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<\/div>\n\u00a9 Greg Nash<\/h5>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\nSenate Judiciary Committee Republicans are\u00a0calling on Sen.\u00a0Dianne Feinstein<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(D-Calif.) to publicly release\u00a0a letter reportedly detailing sexual assault accusations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh after his accuser went public with allegations on Sunday.<\/p>\nA Republican committee spokesman on Sunday expressed concern over the timing of the accusations coming to light,\u00a0questioning\u00a0why Democrats are now bringing the allegations to the public’s attention after reportedly being informed of\u00a0them\u00a0months ago.<\/p>\n
“It raises a lot of questions about Democrats\u2019 tactics and motives to bring this to the rest of the committee\u2019s attention only now rather than during these many steps along the way,” the spokesman said in a statement. “Senator Feinstein should publicly release the letter she received back in July so that everyone can know what she\u2019s known for weeks.”<\/p>\n
Christine Blasey Ford, a\u00a0Palo Alto University professor of psychology, on Sunday\u00a0publicly identified herself in a Washington Post investigation<\/a>\u00a0as the woman accusing Kavanaugh of sexual assault. Ford told the Post that Kavanaugh\u00a0pinned her\u00a0to a bed and forced himself on her\u00a0in the early 1980s, when\u00a0the two were\u00a0attending neighboring high schools in Montgomery County, Md.<\/p>\nFord\u00a0told the paper that\u00a0she\u00a0sent the letter\u00a0to Feinstein\u00a0through\u00a0her congresswoman, Rep.\u00a0Anna Eshoo<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(D-Calif.). The California senator\u00a0passed along the statement to the FBI late Wednesday night.<\/p>\nThe claim\u00a0was\u00a0attributed to an anonymous woman before Ford broke her silence\u00a0on Sunday.<\/p>\n
A spokesperson for Feinstein\u00a0on Friday said the woman who accused Kavanaugh “did not want this information to be public.”<\/p>\n
“The senator took these allegations seriously and believed they should be public,” the statement read. “However, the woman in question made it clear she did not want this information to be public. It is critical in matters of sexual misconduct to protect the identity of the victim when they wish to remain anonymous, and the senator did so in this case.”<\/p>\n
But the GOP committee spokesman said the timing of the allegations being made public was suspect, given Senate Democrats were reportedly aware of the allegations since July.<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s disturbing that these uncorroborated allegations from more than 35 years ago, during high school, would surface on the eve of a committee vote after Democrats sat on them since July,” the spokesman said.<\/p>\n
The spokesman also\u00a0appeared to question Senate Democrats’\u00a0belief in the validity of the allegations against Kavanaugh, given none pressed the nominee on the accusations during his confirmation hearing last week.<\/p>\n
“If Ranking Member Feinstein and other Committee Democrats took this claim seriously, they should have brought it to the full Committee\u2019s attention much earlier,” the spokesman continued.<\/p>\n
The spokesman provided several links to\u00a0statements from those\u00a0who say they are former classmates of Kavanaugh\u00a0vouching for his innocence and character. One link included a list of\u00a065 women<\/a>\u00a0who claim they knew\u00a0the nominee in high school. The women\u00a0signed onto a letter saying Kavanaugh has “treated women with respect.”<\/p>\nSen.\u00a0Lindsey Graham<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(R-S.C.), who is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, echoed the committee’s concerns\u00a0about the timing of when Ford’s allegations have come to light, but expressed a willingness to hear her account in the Senate.<\/p>\n“If the committee is to hear from Ms. Ford, it should be done immediately so the process can continue as scheduled,” Graham said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The FBI, in a statement this week, said\u00a0it has added the accusation against Kavanaugh to his file, but\u00a0did not announce plans to open an investigation into the allegation because it came too late in the process.<\/p>\n
In the Post, Ford accused Kavanaugh of holding her down and forcefully groping her during a party in the early 1980s.\u00a0She\u00a0said Kavanaugh held his hand over her mouth to\u00a0prevent her from screaming.<\/p>\n
She claims the incident has affected her mental health for decades and provided notes from therapy sessions with her husband in which she discusses the event, which she calls a “rape attempt.”<\/p>\n
Her lawyer told the Post that\u00a0Ford’s story\u00a0passed a polygraph test administered by a former FBI agent.<\/p>\n
“I categorically and unequivocally deny this allegation,\u201d Kavanaugh said in a statement provided by the White House. \u201cI did not do this back in high school or at any time.\u201d<\/p>\n
The White House reportedly provided the same statement to the Post on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Senate\u00a0Minority Leader\u00a0Charles Schumer<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(D-N.Y.) on Sunday called for the vote on Kavanaugh’s\u00a0confirmation to be postponed<\/a>\u00a0following Ford’s public accusation.<\/p>\n\u201cTo railroad a vote now would be an insult to the women of America and the integrity of the Supreme Court,” Schumer said in\u00a0a statement.<\/p>\n
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans are\u00a0calling on Sen.\u00a0Dianne Feinstein<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(D-Calif.) to publicly release\u00a0a letter reportedly detailing sexual assault accusations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh after his accuser went public with allegations on Sunday.<\/p>\n A Republican committee spokesman on Sunday expressed concern over the timing of the accusations coming to light,\u00a0questioning\u00a0why Democrats are now bringing the allegations to the public’s attention after reportedly being informed of\u00a0them\u00a0months ago.<\/p>\n “It raises a lot of questions about Democrats\u2019 tactics and motives to bring this to the rest of the committee\u2019s attention only now rather than during these many steps along the way,” the spokesman said in a statement. “Senator Feinstein should publicly release the letter she received back in July so that everyone can know what she\u2019s known for weeks.”<\/p>\n Christine Blasey Ford, a\u00a0Palo Alto University professor of psychology, on Sunday\u00a0publicly identified herself in a Washington Post investigation<\/a>\u00a0as the woman accusing Kavanaugh of sexual assault. Ford told the Post that Kavanaugh\u00a0pinned her\u00a0to a bed and forced himself on her\u00a0in the early 1980s, when\u00a0the two were\u00a0attending neighboring high schools in Montgomery County, Md.<\/p>\n Ford\u00a0told the paper that\u00a0she\u00a0sent the letter\u00a0to Feinstein\u00a0through\u00a0her congresswoman, Rep.\u00a0Anna Eshoo<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(D-Calif.). The California senator\u00a0passed along the statement to the FBI late Wednesday night.<\/p>\n The claim\u00a0was\u00a0attributed to an anonymous woman before Ford broke her silence\u00a0on Sunday.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Feinstein\u00a0on Friday said the woman who accused Kavanaugh “did not want this information to be public.”<\/p>\n “The senator took these allegations seriously and believed they should be public,” the statement read. “However, the woman in question made it clear she did not want this information to be public. It is critical in matters of sexual misconduct to protect the identity of the victim when they wish to remain anonymous, and the senator did so in this case.”<\/p>\n But the GOP committee spokesman said the timing of the allegations being made public was suspect, given Senate Democrats were reportedly aware of the allegations since July.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s disturbing that these uncorroborated allegations from more than 35 years ago, during high school, would surface on the eve of a committee vote after Democrats sat on them since July,” the spokesman said.<\/p>\n The spokesman also\u00a0appeared to question Senate Democrats’\u00a0belief in the validity of the allegations against Kavanaugh, given none pressed the nominee on the accusations during his confirmation hearing last week.<\/p>\n “If Ranking Member Feinstein and other Committee Democrats took this claim seriously, they should have brought it to the full Committee\u2019s attention much earlier,” the spokesman continued.<\/p>\n The spokesman provided several links to\u00a0statements from those\u00a0who say they are former classmates of Kavanaugh\u00a0vouching for his innocence and character. One link included a list of\u00a065 women<\/a>\u00a0who claim they knew\u00a0the nominee in high school. The women\u00a0signed onto a letter saying Kavanaugh has “treated women with respect.”<\/p>\n Sen.\u00a0Lindsey Graham<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(R-S.C.), who is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, echoed the committee’s concerns\u00a0about the timing of when Ford’s allegations have come to light, but expressed a willingness to hear her account in the Senate.<\/p>\n “If the committee is to hear from Ms. Ford, it should be done immediately so the process can continue as scheduled,” Graham said in a statement.<\/p>\n The FBI, in a statement this week, said\u00a0it has added the accusation against Kavanaugh to his file, but\u00a0did not announce plans to open an investigation into the allegation because it came too late in the process.<\/p>\n In the Post, Ford accused Kavanaugh of holding her down and forcefully groping her during a party in the early 1980s.\u00a0She\u00a0said Kavanaugh held his hand over her mouth to\u00a0prevent her from screaming.<\/p>\n She claims the incident has affected her mental health for decades and provided notes from therapy sessions with her husband in which she discusses the event, which she calls a “rape attempt.”<\/p>\n Her lawyer told the Post that\u00a0Ford’s story\u00a0passed a polygraph test administered by a former FBI agent.<\/p>\n “I categorically and unequivocally deny this allegation,\u201d Kavanaugh said in a statement provided by the White House. \u201cI did not do this back in high school or at any time.\u201d<\/p>\n The White House reportedly provided the same statement to the Post on Sunday.<\/p>\n Senate\u00a0Minority Leader\u00a0Charles Schumer<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(D-N.Y.) on Sunday called for the vote on Kavanaugh’s\u00a0confirmation to be postponed<\/a>\u00a0following Ford’s public accusation.<\/p>\n \u201cTo railroad a vote now would be an insult to the women of America and the integrity of the Supreme Court,” Schumer said in\u00a0a statement.<\/p>\n