Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) just publicly and undoubtedly stated her support for Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault.
“The credibility is there for her. So I believe her,” Hirono told The New York Times of the Palo Alto University professor, who goes by Christine Blasey professionally, on Tuesday.
“This whole idea that the Republicans have, that women just sit around making these things up, that is not borne out by the reality,” she added, referring to the dozens of comments from Republicans questioning Blasey’s story.
Two women have accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. Earlier this month, Blasey accused Kavanaugh of assaulting her at a high school party in 1982 when she was 15 years old and he was 17. On Sunday, Deborah Ramirez claimed that the judge exposed himself to her and thrust his penis in her face during a party when they were students at Yale University during the 1983-84 school year.
Kavanaugh has denied both allegations, adding, “This is a smear, plain and simple.”
“I don’t think either one of these women have any reason to lie,” Hirono said of Blasey and Ramirez, adding that she “definitely” does not believe Kavanaugh is credible enough to sit on the highest court in the U.S.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), an integral swing vote, stressed to The New York Times how important it is that we take Blasey’s and Ramirez’s allegations seriously.
“We are now in a place where it’s not about whether or not Judge Kavanaugh is qualified,” Murkowski said. “It is about whether or not a woman who has been a victim at some point in her life is to be believed.”
She added that, at the end of the day, “we need to be able to listen.”
Hirono, who is one of only four women on the Senate Judiciary Committee, reiterated just how much Blasey and Ramirez have risked by coming forward.
“For these two women who have come forward, their lives are upended and they have basically invited maximum scrutiny. I think that is very telling,” she told The New York Times. “And at the same time, Judge Kavanaugh continues to stonewall any kind of independent investigation.”
Both Blasey and Ramirez have asked the FBI to investigate their claims, but GOP leaders have refused their requests. Blasey is scheduled to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee in a public hearing on Thursday. Ramirez said she might be willing to testify even if the FBI probe she has requested doesn’t happen.
A committee vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination is set for Friday.