A pair of Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are calling on FBI Director Christopher Wray to provide them with information about the bureau’s investigation into allegations of misconduct leveled against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh last year.
Democratic Sens. Chris Coons of Delaware and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island sent Wray a letter Thursday asking about the “policies, practices, and procedures” employed during the FBI’s supplemental background investigation of Kavanaugh, as well as whether the Trump administration put limitations on the probe.
“When the request of a supplemental investigation was made, this was no longer a typical background check,” the senators wrote to Wray. “The FBI was tasked with investigating specific and serious allegations of sexual misconduct by a nominee to a lifetime appointment on the highest court in the nation.”
The FBI opened its supplement investigation after Christine Blasey Ford, a California professor, accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her during a small gathering in suburban Maryland in the early 1980s while the two were in high school.
The allegations, as well as claims from two other women, roiled Kavanaugh’s already contentious confirmation battle and thrust his appointment to the Supreme Court into doubt. Kavanaugh forcefully denied the allegations, and the FBI’s investigation into the accusations yielded no corroborating evidence. He was narrowly confirmed by the Senate in October.
Coons and Whitehouse, however, raised concerns about the thoroughness of the FBI’s investigation and said at least two law firms reached out to the FBI with the names of credible witnesses who had information relating to the investigation. The two want to know from Wray how the FBI collected information on the allegations and processed leads left on a tip line.
“In our experience, it is not the practice of the FBI to decline to pursue credible leads in an investigation or to fail to interview the accuser and accused,” they wrote.
The letter from Coons and Whitehouse was prompted by Wray’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee last month, during which the FBI chief told members of the panel he met with FBI personnel to ensure the background investigation into Kavanaugh was consistent with the bureau’s practices, policies, and procedures.
