New sexual misconduct claim against Kavanaugh being investigated: New Yorker
September 24, 2018
NEW YORK: Senate Democrats were investigating a new bombshell allegation of sexual misconduct against Brett Kavanaugh, US President Donald Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court, The New Yorker said Sunday.
Deborah Ramirez, 53, told the magazine Brett Kavanaugh exposed himself to her during a college party at Yale University in the 1980s, thrust his genitals in her face and caused her to touch them without her consent.
The allegation "dates to the 1983-84 academic school year, when Kavanaugh was a freshman at Yale University", the publication reported.
Kavanaugh denied the incident occurred, calling it "a smear, plain and simple".
"The people who knew me then know that this did not happen, and have said so," he said in a statement published by the magazine.
While the Supreme Court nominee refuted the claims, The New Yorker underscored that at least four Democratic senators' offices had been made aware of the new allegations and two of those have commenced a probe.
On the other hand, Republican staffers, the publication said, last week had learnt of the claims to be made public. "Soon after, Senate Republicans issued renewed calls to accelerate the timing of a committee vote."
Senator Mazie Hirono, who, along with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, have spoken in favour of the sexual abuse survivors, said: “This is another serious, credible, and disturbing allegation against Brett Kavanaugh. It should be fully investigated.”
Senators Hirono and Gillibrand held a press conference last week after Holton-Arms alumnae Kate Gold, Sarah Burgess, and Alexis Goldstein delivered a letter from more than 1,000 fellow Holton-Arms high school graduates supporting fellow graduate Dr Christine Blasey Ford and their belief in her accusations against Kavanaugh.
Ramirez, the latest accuser of Trump's Supreme Court pick, has worked for years to support victims of domestic violence. Now, however, she believes that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) should investigate the incident.
“I would think an FBI investigation would be warranted,” she said.
In this regard, Kerri Kupec, a spokesperson for the White House, commented that the Trump administration stood behind Kavanaugh as he faces what he called "last-minute allegations".
“This 35-year-old, uncorroborated claim is the latest in a coordinated smear campaign by the Democrats designed to tear down a good man. … The White House stands firmly behind Judge Kavanaugh," Kupec said.
