Lisa Banks, a lawyer for professor Christine Blasey Ford, said Tuesday night that her client was “not prepared” for a hearing on Monday due to the vitriol she’s faced since coming forward with her sexual assault allegation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh mere days ago.
Banks stressed that delaying the hearing until an FBI investigation can be conducted is the only way to make the proceedings fair and impartial.
“No investigation — any legitimate investigation — is going to happen between now and Monday,” Banks told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “This is going to take some time. What needs to happen is there shouldn’t be a rush to a hearing here. There’s no reason to do that.”
She added that it is a “serious situation” and that senators who profess to want to do the right thing by Blasey Ford and Kavanaugh should support a thorough investigation before a hearing.
Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on Tuesday rejected Blasey Ford’s call to delay the hearing for an FBI probe, saying that there is no reason for “further delay” since “nothing the FBI or any other investigator does would have any bearing on what Dr. Ford tells the committee.”
Watch part of Banks’ interview below:
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) September 19, 2018
