President Trump on Friday called the woman accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault a “credible witness” and deferred to the Senate on whether to delay a vote on his confirmation.
“I thought her testimony was very compelling, and she looks like a very fine woman to me,” Trump said following a meeting with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera at the White House.
{mosads}“I thought that Brett’s testimony, likewise, was really something that I haven’t seen before, it was incredible,” Trump said. “I think it will work out very well for the country.”
Asked if he had considered a replacement for Kavanaugh, Trump responded, “Not even a little bit.”
The president’s remarks came after Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) on Friday joined other Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee in voting to advance Kavanaugh’s nomination to the full Senate.
But Flake called for a one-week delay in the floor vote pending an FBI investigation into the allegations brought against him this month.
Trump on Friday deferred to the Judiciary Committee on whether to reopen the FBI background investigation into Kavanaugh.
“I will be totally reliant on what [Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck] Grassley and the group decides to do,” Trump said. “They have to do what they think is right. They have to be comfortable with themselves.”
Ultimately, it would be up to Trump to ask the FBI to reopen its background investigation into Kavanaugh. The president has not yet done so.
The events Friday capped a dramatic week during which Kavanaugh battled new allegations of sexual misconduct.
On Thursday, Christine Blasey Ford delivered gripping testimony on Capitol Hill about her allegations that Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed and tried to remove her clothes during a high school gathering in 1982.
Kavanaugh, in his own appearance before the Judiciary Committee, fervently denied the allegations and decried his confirmation process as a “national disgrace.”
Updated at 2:42 p.m.