The woman accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault came forward with her explosive allegations on Sunday, saying the supposed attack “derailed me substantially for four or five years” and claiming that the episode rendered her “unable to have healthy relationships with men.”
The woman, Christine Blasey Ford, is a professor at Palo Alto University, according to The Washington Post, which published her account on Sunday. Her decision to go public has capped a whirlwind week that began when Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., sent shockwaves through Washington by announcing she had sent the FBI information about Kavanaugh she received from an anonymous accuser in July. It’s also threatened to upend Kavanaugh’s confirmation, as top Democrats called for a full investigation.
I agree with Senator Flake that we should delay this week's vote on Brett Kavanaugh's nomination. There's a lot of information we don't know and the FBI should have the time it needs to review this new material. Staff calls aren't the appropriate way to handle this.
— Senator Dianne Feinstein (@SenFeinstein) September 17, 2018
Many Republicans immediately pushed back Sunday, saying it was “disturbing” that the decades-old allegations surfaced just days before the Judiciary Committee is set to vote on whether to advance Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Senate floor. Republicans have given no indication that they intend to delay Thursday’s key vote, as a series of Democratic senators demanded throughout the day; however, Senate Judiciary Committee spokesman Taylor Foy said Chairman Chuck Grassley was working to set up follow-up calls with Kavanaugh and Ford in light of the Post report.
