A new report from Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse confirms then-President Trump significantly curtailed the FBI’s 2018 investigation into Brett Kavanaugh as his confirmation to become a Supreme Court justice hung in the balance. After Christine Blasey Ford testified that Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her at a party when they were high school students, Trump approved a one-week-long FBI investigation into the allegations amid a public uproar over Kavanaugh’s nomination. But despite claims by Trump that the FBI had “free rein” in their probe, his staff ordered the FBI to only interview 10 witnesses and not to pursue the many tips or offers of corroborating evidence the agency received. Lawyers for Blasey Ford said the report confirmed the 2018 investigation was a “sham effort directed by the Trump White House to silence brave victims.”