Harvard law professer emeritus Alan Dershowitz told Fox Thursday that Christine Blasey Ford, who is accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault “has to testify” before the Senate Judiciary Committee Monday.
“I think she has to show up on Monday,” he emphasized. “If she doesn't show up on Monday, she has violated his core right to confront his accuser.”
“She has to testify,” Dershowitz said. “As far as the FBI investigation is concerned, don’t count on that. There is not going to be very much the FBI can do. First of all, it is not an alleged federal crime. Second, the FBI doesn’t make credibility judgments.”
He pointed out that ultimately the situation is a “he said, she said” because Ford can’t remember details like where the alleged assault occurred and what year.
“I don’t think we’re going to get very much more,” he said. “The American public is going to have to decide …who do you believe when you have a situation like this?”
Christine Blasey Ford claims that Kavanaugh pinned her down and attempted to rape her at a party in high school. She initially offered to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee but then claimed that Senate Republicans were planning to have her sit at the same table as Kavanaugh, something Committee chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) denies. She has since insisted on an FBI investigation into her claims against Kavanaugh.
The FBI previously declined to investigate the incident. Grassley pointed out that the “FBI considers the matter closed.” He also noted that the FBI provides confidential background information to the Committee as a courtesy to aid its assessment of a nominee’s background. The agency does not make a credibility assessment of information it receives as a part of its background investigations.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has offered Blasey Ford a range of options in terms of testifying and Grassley said the committee expects word of whether or not she'll show up to Monday's hearing by 10 a.m. Friday.