Three of Brett Kavanaugh’s most fervent Republican supporters on the Senate Judiciary Committee — Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), John Cornyn (R-TX) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) — have suggested that they may question Christine Blasey Ford during the hearing on Thursday, according to Politico, despite Republicans’ appointment of a female prosecutor to do the questioning for them.
“There’s gaps and there’s inconsistencies, but I expect that will be covered by the staff counsel. If it’s not then I’ll reserve the right to ask questions,” Cornyn told Politico. “Dr. Ford identified three people who were allegedly present who didn’t have any recollection of any such event occurring. That’s one way you provide evidence is provide corroboration.”
While Graham and Hatch didn’t say outright that they planned to question Blasey Ford, neither are “ruling out asking their own questions,” in Politico’s words. Republican committee members asked a female lawyer with a background in prosecuting years-old sex crimes to attend the hearing and question both Blasey Ford and Kavanaugh for them, primarily to avoid appearing insensitive to the accuser as the committee majority is all white men.
Graham — who has been blatant about his distrust of the third woman (and her lawyer) who has accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct — told Politico that accusers deserve to be heard, “but when you accuse someone of a crime, the accuser needs to be tested.”
Blasey Ford and Kavanaugh will both testify during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday about Blasey Ford’s allegations that Kavanugh sexually assaulted her in high school.