White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told ABC News Tuesday morning that the White House would be “open” to having Deborah Ramirez testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Ramirez is accusing Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct in college.
“Certainly we would be open to that and that process could take place on Thursday,” Sanders said. “Again the president’s been clear: let them speak but let’s also let Brett Kavanaugh speak and let’s let him tell his side of the story before we allow allegations to determine his entire future.”
In a New Yorker article published Sunday, Ramirez claimed that Kavanaugh exposed himself to her when they both attended Yale in the 1980s although, The New Yorker acknowledges, she was initially “reluctant to characterize Kavanaugh’s role in the alleged incident with certainty.”
Kavanaugh completely denied the allegation Sunday and in a Fox interview Monday.
“This alleged event from 35 years ago did not happen,” Kavanaugh told The New Yorker. “The people who knew me then know that this did not happen, and have said so. This is a smear, plain and simple. I look forward to testifying on Thursday about the truth, and defending my good name—and the reputation for character and integrity I have spent a lifetime building—against these last-minute allegations.”
Judge Kavanaugh is set to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday regarding sexual misconduct allegations made by Christine Blasey Ford. Ford claims that Kavanaugh groped her, pinned her down, and tried to remove her clothing while he was drunk at a party in high school.
Kavanaugh completely denies Ford’s allegations as well, saying such an incident never happened.