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Kavanaugh Accuser Faces Death Threats, Asks for FBI Investigation Before Testifying

HeadlineSep 19, 2018

The woman who has accused Supreme Court justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh of attempting to rape her decades ago has asked for the FBI to investigate her claims before she testifies to the Senate. Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley had invited the woman—Dr. Christine Blasey Ford—and Kavanaugh to both testify on Monday. In a letter to Grassley, Blasey Ford’s attorneys wrote, “While Dr. Ford’s life was being turned upside down, you and your staff scheduled a public hearing for her to testify at the same table as Judge Kavanaugh in front of two dozen U.S. Senators on national television to relive this traumatic and harrowing incident.” The letter went on to reveal that Christine Blasey Ford has received multiple death threats in the past few days and has been forced to move her family out of her home. On Tuesday night, one of her attorneys, Lisa Banks, appeared on CNN.

Lisa Banks: “Any talk of a hearing on Monday, frankly, is premature, because she just came forward with these allegations 48 hours ago. And since that time, she has been dealing with hate mail, harassment, death threats. So she has been spending her time trying to figure out how to put her life back together, how to protect herself and her family. And there hasn’t been an investigation. And these are serious allegations.”

On Tuesday night, Senator Grassley said there’s no reason for any further delay of the hearing, even if Dr. Christine Blasey Ford does not testify. Meanwhile, President Trump dismissed the need for an FBI probe into her allegations.

John Decker: “To that end, what would be the problem with the FBI reopening their background investigation into Judge Kavanaugh? Would you support such a thing?”

President Donald Trump: “It wouldn’t bother me, other than the FBI, John said, that they really don’t do that. That’s not what they do.”

Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California responded on Twitter by writing, “Fact check: The FBI can investigate Dr. Blasey Ford’s allegations as part of its background investigation—that is their job. To say otherwise is FALSE. It investigated Anita Hill’s allegations of sexual harassment against Clarence Thomas. It should investigate this too.”

President Trump also defended Brett Kavanaugh, describing him as a “great gentleman.”

President Donald Trump: “I feel so badly for him that he’s going through this, to be honest with you. I feel so badly for him. This is not a man that deserves this. … And we will see what happens. But I just think he is at a level that we rarely see, not only in government, anywhere in life. And, honestly, I feel terribly for him, for his wife, who is an incredible, lovely woman, and for his beautiful, young daughters. I feel terribly for them.”

President Trump did not refer to Kavanaugh’s accuser by name, just calling her “the woman.”

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