Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said Thursday that if the Republicans don’t join in requesting an FBI investigation into a sexual assault allegation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, then his accuser, professor Christine Blasey Ford, should not testify before the Senate.
Gillibrand and Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, scolded Senate Republicans for rejecting calls for an investigation and for planning to move ahead with a vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination if Ford doesn’t testify at a scheduled hearing Monday.
“It is not clear to me that it can’t be done. They should be able to start that investigation right now,” Gillibrand said. “If the American public speak out loud enough about how important this is to them, they might change their minds, they should change their minds.”
[More: Female Senate Democrats tell male GOP colleagues to ‘shut up’ and ‘do the right thing’]
Pressed on whether Ford should come before the Senate Judiciary Committee if the FBI doesn’t reopen a background check investigation into Kavanaugh in light of the allegation, Gillibrand said, “No, I don’t.”
“What are they afraid of, what is this White House afraid of, what is this president afraid of, what is the U.S. Senate afraid of?” Gillibrand said.
The senators were joined Thursday by alumnae of Ford’s high school Holton-Arms, who were delivering a letter signed by 1,000 alumnae voicing support for Ford and her call for an investigation into the alleged assault. Three former students of the school planned to hand-deliver a copy of the letter to Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., who also attended Holton-Arms.
