GOP Rep. Says Brett Kavanaugh Allegations Amount To 'Character Assassination'

"If that’s the new standard, no man will ever qualify for the Supreme Court again," Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) said of Christine Blasey Ford's sexual assault claims.
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Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) on Saturday went after Christine Blasey Ford’s sexual assault accusation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, calling her story an attempt at “character assassination.”

The Republican lawmaker said Blasey’s allegation that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were teenagers wasn’t credible because she couldn’t remember all the details 35 years later, the Des Moines Register reported.

“I’m thinking, is there any man in this room that wouldn’t be subjected to such an allegation? A false allegation?” King said at an Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition event on Saturday. “How can you disprove something like that? Which means, if that’s the new standard, no man will ever qualify for the Supreme Court again.”

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) on Saturday attempted to discredit Christine Blasey Ford, a 51-year-old research psychologist in Northern California who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her around 1982.
Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) on Saturday attempted to discredit Christine Blasey Ford, a 51-year-old research psychologist in Northern California who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her around 1982.
Chris Maddaloni via Getty Images

King’s remarks echo President Donald Trump’s skepticism of the allegations. In a pair of tweets, the president questioned why Blasey didn’t immediately tell law enforcement officials that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her.

Trump’s tweets propagate the misguided notion that victims of sexual assault will typically respond by calling the police. In fact, nearly two-thirds of women who are raped or sexually assaulted don’t contact law enforcement.

In a Washington Post op-ed published Friday, Patti Davis, a daughter of President Ronald Reagan, explained why she too didn’t tell anyone she was raped until decades later.

“It doesn’t surprise me one bit that for more than 30 years, Christine Blasey Ford didn’t talk about the assault she remembers,” Davis wrote in the Post.

“Your memory snaps photos of the details that will haunt you forever, that will change your life and live under your skin,” she added. “It blacks out other parts of the story that really don’t matter much.”

Blasey, a 51-year-old research psychologist in Northern California, has alleged Kavanaugh pinned her down and groped her at a small party around 1982 when they were both high school students.

She has reached a tentative agreement to testify about her experience before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday. The panel has delayed its vote on whether to advance Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the full Senate in order to hear Blasey’s testimony.

Kavanaugh, 53, has denied Blasey’s allegation and will appear before the committee on Thursday following her testimony.

This story has been updated with the news that Kavanaugh will testify.

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