Brett Kavanaugh will admit to drinking too much when he testifies before senators on Thursday but he will emphasize he ‘never sexually assaulted anyone – not in high school, not in college, not ever.’
The Supreme Court nominee’s testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee was released Wednesday and was written before a bombshell allegation that Kavanaugh abetted with drugging girls and gang raping them in high school.
Kavanaugh denied that allegation in a statement released by the White House: ‘This is ridiculous and from the Twilight Zone. I don’t know who this is and this never happened.’
Brett Kavanaugh leaving his home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, on Wednesday
He and Christine Ford will testify separately on Thursday
In his Senate testimony, Kavanaugh will plead with senators for his judicial career and the career appointment of a lifetime.
Not only will the eyes of the world watch how he addresses Christine Blasey Ford’s allegation he sexually assaulted her while they were high school students in the 1980s, lawmakers will be weighing his every word to decide on how to vote on President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.
Kavanaugh will admit to drinking but emphasize he never assaulted anyone.
‘I spent most of my time in high school focused on academics, sports, church, and service. But I was not perfect in those days, just as I am not perfect today. I drank beer with my friends, usually on weekends. Sometimes I had too many. In retrospect, I said and did things in high school that make me cringe now,’ he will say.
‘I never did anything remotely resembling what Dr. Ford describes,’ he will say. ‘I categorically and unequivocally deny the allegation against me by Dr. Ford. I never had any sexual or physical encounter of any kind with Dr. Ford. I am not questioning that Dr. Ford may have been sexually assaulted by some person in some place at some time. But I have never done that to her or to anyone. I am innocent of this charge.’
Ford will testify before senators separately on Thursday.
Kavanaugh does not address an allegation from Debra Ramirez, who charges he exposed himself to her at a college party when they were students at Yale University, thrust his penis in her face, and forced her to touch it when she pushed him away.
He has denied that charge.
But there could be more from him to come.
His statement, released by the Senate Judiciary Committee, has brackets at the end with the words: ‘additional testimony to come.’
But he does address sexual assault in general, saying it’s ‘horrific,’ ‘morally wrong,’ and victims deserve to be heard.
And he repeats his charge he is a victim of a ‘smear campaign.’
‘There has been a frenzy to come up with something – anything, no matter how far-fetched or odious – that will block a vote on my nomination. These are last minute smears, pure and simple,’ he will say.
And he again will vow to stay in the confirmation process: ‘I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process. This effort to destroy my good name will not drive me out. The vile threats of violence against my family will not drive me out.’
His confirmation is far from guaranteed and he is in an all-out bid to save his nomination.
Kavanaugh sat for a joint interview with Fox News alongside his wife, Ashley, on Monday where he directly took on accusations by a two women who have made explosive assault allegations against him from decades ago.
‘What I know is the truth, and the truth is I’ve never sexually assaulted anyone,’ Kavanaugh told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum in an interview where the couple were seated side-by-side.
And President Trump has stood by his nominee.
Kavanaugh is in an all-out bid to save his nomination, doing an interview with Fox News on Monday with his wife Ashley
Christine Blasey (now Ford) and Brett Kavanaugh in their respective high school year books
Republicans hold a 51-seat majority in the upper chamber, meaning they can only lose one senator, if all Democrats vote no on Kavanaugh.
Several Republican senators are closely watching how the allegations against Kavanaugh play out.
Republican Senators Bob Corker of Tennessee, Susan Collins of Maine, Jeff Flake of Arizona and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska are considered the votes to watch.
But Corker says there are more doubting lawmakers out there.
‘I know the media keeps characterizing three or four people, but I feel like it’s a large number of them that want to see firsthand the accusation and the rebuttal, and again, will be looking at it in a very sober way,’ he told NBC News. ‘So I think it’s much larger than you think.’
Sen. Jon Kyl, who was appointed this month to replace the late Sen. John McCain, was Kavanaugh’s guide through the confirmation process.
He supports Kavanaugh but acknowledged some senators are struggling.
‘I don’t doubt this accusation complicates the equation for folks considering his nomination,’ Kyl said.
Their doubts come as a new bombshell dropped on Wednesday – a charge of gang rape against Kavanaugh and his high school pals from Georgetown Prep.
Julie Swetnick, his new accuser, released a sworn statement through her attorney Michael Avenatti saying that Kavanaugh and his friend Mark Judge were there as she was abused by a ‘train’ of teenage boys.
Accuser: Julie Swetnick’s dramatic testimony is a new blow to Brett Kavanaugh
She said she was drugged ‘using Quaaludes or something similar’ which had been put in her drink – and that Kavanaugh and his friends would spike ‘punch’ at parties with grain alcohol or drugs to ’cause girls to lose inhibitions and their ability to say ‘No’.’
‘This is ridiculous and from the Twilight Zone. I don’t know who this is and this never happened,’ Kavanaugh said in a statement released by the White House.
Judge was the teenage boy Christine Blasey Ford charged with being in the room when Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a high school party in the 1980s.
Kavanaugh also has denied her charge and a second allegation from Debra Ramirez, who claims the Supreme Court nominee exposed himself and thrust his penis in her face, forcing her to touch it when she pushed him away at a college party when they were at Yale.
Trump is sticking by his nominee and said Senate Republicans should have pushed through his confirmation two weeks ago so people wouldn’t be talking about the sexual allegations against him right now.
‘They could’ve pushed it through two-and-a-half weeks ago, and you wouldn’t be talking about it right now, which is frankly what I would’ve preferred, but they didn’t do that,’ the president said at the United Nations in New York on Wednesday.
That time frame would have Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court before the allegations against him came to light.
Trump called Kavanaugh an ‘absolute gem.’