Former President George W. Bush on Tuesday stated that he will continue to support Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, despite the allegation that Kavanaugh committed sexual assault in his late teens.
“Laura and I have known and respected Brett Kavanaugh for decades, and we stand by our comments the night Judge Kavanaugh was nominated,” Bush said to the Politico in a statement.
Bush had previously expressed support for Kavanaugh’s character, saying, “He is a fine husband, father and friend – and a man of the highest integrity.”
“He will make a superb Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States,” he added.
Following the report of the allegations by Christine Blasey Ford, who claims that in the early 1980s Kavanaugh pinned her down and attempted to remove her clothes during a high school party and then put his hand over her mouth when she tried to scream for help, the nomination was fiercely defended by President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
However, a planned vote by a Senate committee was postponed after both Democrats and Republicans called for Kavanaugh and his accuser to testify publicly under oath.
The Supreme Court nominee is eagerly awaiting the hearing to “clear his name of this false allegation,” the White House said in a statement.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley noted that his staff had contacted the woman and heard her account, but were waiting for a follow-up call from her attorneys regarding the hearing.
“However, to provide ample transparency, we will hold a public hearing Monday to give these recent allegations a full airing,” Grassley said.
Ford’s attorney Debra Katz said her client was “willing to do whatever it takes to get her story forth.”
Senator Susan Collins, who is expected to give the key swinging vote, stressed that if it turns out Kavanaugh lied he would be disqualified.
“Obviously, if Judge Kavanaugh has lied about what happened, that would be disqualifying,” Collins said, adding that “having the opportunity to observe her being questioned, read a transcript and a deposition and make that kind of assessment is so important.”
On Monday, Kavanaugh reiterated his denial of the accusations, claiming he did nothing of what the woman described either to her or to any other woman. “Because this never happened, I had no idea who was making this accusation until she identified herself yesterday,” he said.
President Trump again praised his nominee, saying Kavanaugh was “one of the finest people that anybody has known” and indicating that he was in favor of a hearing on the allegations.
“If it takes a little delay, it’ll take a little delay,” Trump told reporters at an event on workforce development. “It will, I’m sure, work out very well.”
Be the first to comment