Christine Blasey Ford is “prepared” to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee next week about her accusation that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in high school, but is ruling out the Senate GOP’s plan to hold the hearing on Monday.
Ford’s attorney Debra Katz told the Senate Judiciary Committee that Ford “wishes to testify, provided that we can agree on terms that are fair and which ensure her safety,” in an email obtained by POLITICO and first reported by the New York Times. Senate Republicans have offered her public or private testimony before the committee, whatever makes Ford feel most comfortable.
“A hearing on Monday is not possible and the Committee’s insistence that it occur then is arbitrary in any event. Dr. Ford has asked me to let you know that she appreciates the various options you have suggested. Her strong preference continues to be for the Senate Judiciary Committee to allow for a full investigation prior to her testimony,” Katz wrote.
Kavanaugh on Thursday told Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) that he’ll attend Monday’s hearing, according to a letter from Kavanaugh supplied by the White House.
Sen. Mazie Hirono told ABC that Grassley’s claim that Republicans have done everything they can to contact Dr. Ford “is such bullshit I can hardly stand it.”