Well, this backfired. And how.
Over the weekend, a woman came forward accusing Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, of sexually assaulting her at a party while both were in high school. Or, to put it more accurately, Senator Dianne Feinstein came forward with an anonymously written letter from an accuser who gave vague details about an assault from over three decades ago. (RELATED: Democrats Push New Secret Document In Attempt to Demonize Brett Kavanaugh.)
Sen. Feinstein demanded that the FBI investigate the incident, which would, coincidentally, mean delaying Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote. The FBI has declined to investigate the matter, and passed the information along to the White House. (RELATED: Democrats’ Desperate Attempt to Take Down Kavanaugh Fails.)
However, things took a dramatic turn over the past few days as Kavanaugh’s accuser has gone public. Christine Blasey Ford came out as the accuser and hired a lawyer, Debra Katz, to represent her.
Many, including Senate Republicans, suspect this is a trap, given that Sen. Feinstein was informed about Ford’s allegations back in July but waited until just before the confirmation vote to divulge them. The timing, while brilliant politically, is suspect.
Republicans tried to force Ford’s hand and demanded she testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee. As Jonathan Swan and Mike Allen report in their newsletter this morning, this was a bet on Ford declining to testify. As Swan and Allen write, “This gambit basically bets that she will decline, and Republicans can then say that they tried to investigate further.”
Well, because Republicans can never out-compete Democrats at playing hardball, that plan backfired in a major way. Axios reports that Ford is willing to testify before the Committee:
Debra Katz, the attorney for Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault in the 1980s, told NBC’s “Today” that Ford believes the incident was “attempted rape” and is willing to testify publicly before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
NEW: The woman who accused Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault is willing to testify publicly before the Senate Judiciary Committee. https://t.co/yj6lEV7kON
— Axios (@axios) September 17, 2018
You can watch the interview below:
“She has taken a polygraph. She is a credible person. These are serious allegations, and these should be addressed.”
Watch @savannahguthrie’s full interview with Debra Katz, attorney for Kavanaugh accuser pic.twitter.com/AIplgPpgqi
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) September 17, 2018
This isn’t good. By agreeing to testify, Ford may have just cost Kavanaugh the Supreme Court. Here’s why: The Senate Judiciary Committee will now be obliged to hear her testimony, thus delaying the confirmation vote, which was set to occur this week. It’s an open question of whether or not they can fast-track this testimony. We know Democrats will continue to delay it, hoping the vote is pushed beyond the November elections.
Republicans thought they were pulling a fast one over on Ford and her tenuous accusations. Looks like they may have just dug their own grave on this one.
