WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump said in 2018 that the FBI was “free to” investigate allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, but a report Tuesday from Senate Democrats said multiple cases There was no follow-up and the investigation was found to be “flawed and incomplete”. Lead.
A report by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (DR.I.), a member of the Judiciary Committee, found that the FBI had not investigated Kavanaugh’s alleged sexual misconduct more fully, which two women had testified about. criticized that. Mr. Kavanaugh denies the charges.
The FBI passed on thousands of tips it received to the White House without investigating them, according to a White House report.
“The supplemental background investigation was flawed and incomplete because the FBI did not pursue numerous leads that could have yielded corroborating or relevant information,” the report said.
“While President Trump has publicly claimed that the FBI is ‘free’ to take any investigative action it deems necessary, the Trump White House has complete control over the scope of the investigation and will not allow the FBI to interview relevant witnesses. “The report concluded:
The White House claimed the Trump administration had “knee-jerk” FBI agents and “misled the Senate.”
Kavanaugh did not respond to requests for comment.
Trump campaign spokeswoman Caroline Levitt said in a statement that the “ridiculous story” about the report is a way to “delegitimize the Supreme Court and pave the way for Kamala Harris to pack it with radical left-wing judges.” said.
“We all know that Brett Kavanaugh was unfairly smeared and filled with lies in a Democratic-led disinformation effort to derail his ultimately unsuccessful appointment to the court,” Levitt said. Ta.
The FBI said in a statement that it would respond to requests from the White House Counsel’s Office for background checks on candidates for government positions. In contrast to criminal investigations, the FBI does not have the authority to expand background checks beyond what the White House requests.
“In these investigations, the FBI follows long-established processes and the scope of the investigation is limited to what is requested,” the bureau said. โ
The report revisits one of the most controversial Supreme Court confirmations in a generation, which nearly blocked Kavanaugh’s nomination. Mr. Kavanaugh was approved on a near party-line vote of 50-48, with West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin the only Democrat to join Republicans. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) voted present.
On July 9, 2018, President Trump nominated Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court after 12 years on the Washington, D.C., Circuit Court of Appeals. Allegations of sexual misconduct began to surface two months later, even though they were not revealed in an FBI background check.
Trump denied it at the time. He said he would like to limit the FBI’s investigation and “use their discretion to interview anyone they see fit.”
Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford said in a letter to the Senate that Kavanaugh “physically and sexually assaulted her” during their high school years, including locking her in his bedroom, climbing on top of her and attempting to undress her. “I added it,” he said. She later testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Mr. Ford’s attorneys, Debra Katz and Lisa Banks, said the report confirmed the FBI investigation was a “sham” designed to provide cover for Republicans to confirm Mr. Kavanaugh.
“The Congressional report released today confirms what we have long suspected: The FBI’s additional investigation into then-candidate Brett Kavanaugh is, in fact, a serious threat to victims and others who have bravely come forward. This was a false effort directed by President Trump to silence witnesses and cover up the incident.”The truth is,” the lawyers said in a statement. “As a result of this effort, those who came forward with concerns to the FBI were not investigated and were redirected to President Trump’s White House, where the information was intentionally suppressed.”
Deborah Ramirez, Kavanaugh’s classmate at Yale University, told The New Yorker that Kavanaugh “exposed himself at a drunken dorm party.”
Kavanaugh has publicly denied both allegations.
Whitehouse, a former federal prosecutor and state attorney general, said he continues to review the FBI’s performance because of serious questions raised during the confirmation process for lifetime appointments to the court.
“President Trump obstructed the FBI’s proper investigation into Kavanaugh and denied the senators the information they needed to fulfill their constitutional duties.” Mr. Whitehouse said in a post about X:. โWhen serious questions like these about a lifelong candidate emerge late in the confirmation process, senators and the American people deserve real answers, not trumped-up misdirections.โ