Warren: Kavanaugh hearing reinforced decision to consider 2020 presidential bid

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Tuesday said that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing addressing a sexual assault charge against him spurred her to make an announcement over the weekend that she’d consider running for president. 

“It was every part of it,” Warren told the Independent Journal Review when asked about if his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee played a role in her stating she’d consider a 2020 White House bid. 

{mosads}The Massachusetts senator, who has long been considered a potential 2020 contender, added that “after a day like last Thursday, where 11 powerful men were trying to figure out how to help another powerful man get an even more powerful position without even listening to the claims — the quite credible claims — that have been raised against him, it made me just feel like, come on, time’s up.” 

Her comments came just days after she said at a town hall that she would take a hard look at running for president following November’s midterm elections. 

“After November 6, I will take a hard look at running for president,” she told a crowd in Holyoke, Mass.

It’s time for women to go to Washington & fix our broken gov’t. That includes a woman at the top. Today at a town hall in Holyoke, Marty, a Springfield teacher, asked where things stand with me running for President in 2020. I told him: after Nov 6th, I’ll take a hard look at it. pic.twitter.com/JBRPMFsERf

— Elizabeth Warren (@elizabethforma) September 29, 2018

President Trump responded to Warren’s potential presidential ambitions on Monday at a rally in Tennessee. 

“Elizabeth Warren. She said she’s considering a run for the presidency. Please, please run,” Trump said.

Warren took a shot back at the president on Tuesday, telling the Journal Review, “Donald Trump is taking this country in the wrong direction, and working families have taken one punch to the gut after another.”

Trump also railed against other potential Democratic presidential candidates, including Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and former Vice President Joe Biden. 

Last Thursday, Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding Ford’s accusations that he sexually assaulted her at a high school party in the 1980’s. 

Kavanaugh has fiercely denied the accusation. He’s also denied sexual misconduct claims from two other women, Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick. 

After calls from GOP senators such as Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) to look into the matter, Trump approved an FBI investigation into allegations against Kavanaugh. 

The New York Times noted on Monday that the White House gave authorization to the FBI to interview anyone thought to be appropriate in its investigation of Kavanaugh.

A Senate vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation has been delayed until Friday to allow time for the FBI to conduct its investigation.